The Vetting Commission amended its Rules of Organization and Functioning to regulate the evaluation of candidates for positions in the SCM and in the SCM Boards

The Vetting Commission informs that it has made changes to its Rules of Organization and Functioning to regulate the evaluation procedure for the subjects outlined in Law no. 26/2022 on measures related to the selection of candidates for the positions of members in the self-administration bodies of judges and prosecutors. These subjects are candidates for positions in the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM), who have submitted applications after 1 September 2023, and candidates for positions in the SCM Boards: the Board for the selection and evaluation of judges and the Disciplinary Board of Judges, regardless of the date of submission of the application. The amendments also make other minor conforming or clarifying changes to the Rules generally.

The amendments introduce a new section into the Rules detailing the evaluation criteria that the Commission will use in the process of verifying the financial and ethical integrity of the above mentioned subjects. Importantly, in assessing whether the wealth acquired by the subject in the last 15 years corresponds to the declared income, the Commission will use the method of calculating unjustified wealth defined in the annex to the Regulation. To determine whether the subject has adhered to the rules of ethics and professional conduct, the Commission will be guided by the norms and legal regime in force at the time of the behavior in question.

The Rules also state that, in assessing compliance with the ethical integrity criterion, the Commission may consider the severity, context, and premeditated nature of any ethical integrity incident. At the same time, information considered classified and not declassified will not be used in the evaluation process. On the other hand, the Commission may consider the cooperation or lack of cooperation of the subject during the evaluation process.

The updated Rules have been published in Romanian and English on the Commission's website: Internal Regulations (vettingmd.eu). Additionally, for preliminary information purposes, the Commission has sent the subjects of the evaluation the updated Rules. The Vetting Commission anticipates initiating the evaluation of these subject categories in the coming weeks. There are 5 non-judge candidates for SCM membership and 12 candidates for positions in the two SCM boards.

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