Pre-Vetting Commission of Moldova starts evaluation of candidates put forward by parliament for office of member of Superior Council of Magistracy

Chisinau, 17 January /MOLDPRES/ - The Pre-Vetting Commission today informed that it had started the procedure of evaluation of the group of candidates put forward by the parliament for the office of member of the Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM).  

According to the quoted source, freelance jurists, lawyers, representatives of the civil society and academic environment are members of the list of those 12 candidates non-judges, admitted to the contest under a decision by the parliamentary juridical commission for appointments and immunities. They will go through the process of verification of the financial and ethic integrity, in order to be able to become eligible to hold an office of CSM permanent member.     

At the first stage, the evaluation Commission sent to the candidates the form of the declaration of personal wealth and interests for the last 5 years, to be filled in, signed electronically and submitted to the Commission’s Secretariat during seven days after the request. The non-submission on time of the declarations represents ground for the finding out by the Commission of the failure of the evaluation as regards the candidate. Subsequently, the Pre-Vetting Commission will analyze the incomes and properties of the candidates and their families, based on extended researches, having direct access to sources of private and public data, accumulating information from private people and legal entities, including by requesting additional explanations from the candidates. At the same time, the candidates non-judges will be verified whether they meet the criteria of ethic integrity.

After the consideration of the information accumulated, the candidates will be invited to public hearings and the evaluation process will end with the issuance by the Pre-Vetting Commission of decisions for each candidate individually.  

Under the legal provisions in force, the results of the evaluation will be submitted to the parliament’s juridical commission for appointments and immunities – the institution in charge of the contest’s organization. Of the candidates non-judges who pass the evaluation of the Pre-Vetting Commission, the parliament will appoint six members of the Superior Council of Magistracy with the votes of five thirds of the elected MPs. Thus, the new composition of CSM will be made up of six judges elected by the General Assembly of Judges by secret vote and six non-judges, appointed by the parliament.