POSITION PAPER on the draft law amending some normative acts – revision of the judicial map

AUTHOR: Angela Popil, member of the Justice Experts Group (GEJ)

Reviewed by: Adrian Ermurachi, IPRE Co-Executive Director

SUMMARY

This Opinion is formulated in response to the request of the Ministry of Justice nr. 03/10959 from 12 December 2023, addressed to the Institute for European Policies and Reforms.

The opinion is expressing on the draft law on modification of some normative acts – revision of the judicial map.

The authors of the opinion consider it opportunate to promote the draft law on the amendment of some normative acts – revision of the judicial map, published by the Ministry of Justice on December 12, 2023. We consider it a necessary draft law in the context of ensuring a good functioning of the courts and realizing the rights and needs of citizens.

However, we believe that the draft law needs to be improved and the conceptual proposals are set out below in this Position’s text.

In order to improve the draft law, the following recommendations are presented:

• Conducting a comprehensive impact analysis of the proposed amendments regarding the reconfiguration of district courts and renaming and reconfiguring the districts of courts of appeal, respecting the rigors set out in the Government Decision nr. 23/2019 on the approval of the Methodology for impact analysis in the process of substantiating draft normative acts.
• Review of the briefing note in the part referring to the need to transfer some court premises to other courts in order to describe the expected effects of this transfer.
• Exclusion from the point no. 15 of the Annex to Law nr. 76/2016 on the reorganization of the courts of law of the Soldanesti headquarters of Orhei Court (Art. II, point 2 of the draft).
• Clarifying in the briefing note the arguments and reasoning justifying the change of name of the courts of appeal, including an impact assessment, of the benefits and advantages of this proposal.
• Consolidation of arguments from the briefing note on the proposal to create the Court of Appeal South with headquarters in mun. Cahul and mun. Comrat especially with reference to the benefits of this initiative and its effects on the efficient realization of citizens’ right of free access to justice.
• Clarification and reflection in the briefing note of the reasoning justifying the transfer of Hancesti Court from the district of the Chisinau Court of Appeal (Center) to the Court of Appeal South, the cost-benefit assessment of this proposal, including the impact of this transfer on the activity of professionals (lawyers, prosecutors, bailiffs, etc.).
• Impact assessment of the transitional provisions in Article III para. (2) of the draft law in the part aimed at transferring the localities from Nisporeni district to Straseni district court after commissioning of the new headquarters of Straseni district court in conjunction with the proposal to transfer Ungheni district court with all current seats in the district of the Court of Appeal North (Balti).