BULGARIA’S PARLIAMENT PASSED AMENDMENTS TO JUDICIARY SYSTEM ACT AT SECOND READING

On 31stt of March, Bulgaria’s Parliament adopted at second reading the amendments to the Judiciary System Act.

The amendments provide for the division of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) into two separate colleges – one of judges that will oversee the courts and one of prosecutors and the direct election of the magistrates in them. They also envisage the decisions on all appointments and dismissals in the colleges to be made through open voting.

Decisions on appointments, promotions and dismissals of magistrates will be taken independently by the college of judges, and by the college of prosecutors and investigators respectively.

The decisions reached by the SJC colleges on appointments, promotions and dismissals of magistrates will require a majority of not fewer than 8 votes in the judges’ college and not fewer than 6 votes in the prosecutors’ college. The rest of the decisions will require a majority of no less than half of the attending members. SJC members will not have the option to abstain from voting.