ArmInfo.Armenian President Armen Sarkissian and Justice Minister Rustam Badasyan at a meeting on March 30 discussed the legislative package "On Amendments and Addenda to the Constitutional Law of the RA Judicial Code" recently adopted by the National Assembly and sent for signing to the head of state.
As reported by the RA President's press service, the Minister presented explanations to the Armenian President on the mentioned changes in the legislation.
It should be noted that on February 24, the RA President's Press Service issued clarifications in connection with the submission by the National Assembly on February 4, 2021 for the signature of the head of state of the law "On Amendments and Additions to the Constitutional Law" RA Judicial Code "and" On Additions and Amendments to the Law "On the Academy of Justice" (hereinafter referred to as the Laws). At that time, the President's Office reported that the laws had been studied by independent experts and lawyers working in the Office of the President of the Republic, who concluded that the Laws were obviously problematic from the point of view of constitutionality.
"The President of the Republic attaches great importance to the role and importance of the judicial system in the life of the state and in ensuring the normal life of society. Implementation of the priority of law, legality, equality before the law and the court and fair investigation of court proceedings, guaranteeing the right to a fair, public investigation of cases within a reasonable timeframe by an independent and impartial court are necessary conditions for building confidence in the state and the judiciary, for the implementation of effective justice. Application of the law should not be problematic from the point of view of compliance with the principles of independence and impartiality of judges enshrined in the Constitution, exclusion of any interference in the implementation of justice. The President of the Republic did not sign the Laws and, with appropriate legal justifications and arguments, appealed to the Constitutional Court with a request to determine the issue of compliance of the Laws with the Constitution, " the message of the press service of the RA President read.
To note, the changes initiated by the Ministry of Justice propose the creation of a specialized anti- corruption court. The court must have at least 25 judges, 20 of whom will consider cases of corruption offenses stipulated by Appendix 6 to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia, and 5 - cases arising from applications and claims submitted on the basis of the Law "On Confiscation of Property of Illegal Origin" ... The package of drafts also proposes the creation of a specialized anti-corruption court of appeal, with at least 10 judges. According to the proposed amendments, the criminal chamber in the Court of Cassation will consist of 8 judges, and the civil and administrative chambers - 13 judges each. The projects establish the procedure for recruiting the department of anti-corruption specialization, lists of candidates for judges of the anti-corruption court and the department of anti-corruption specialization, a list of candidates for judges to be promoted to the anti-corruption court of appeal, as well as requirements and restrictions for appointment to the position of a judge, structures for checking the integrity of candidates for judges in all instances. To improve the overall integrity of the bodies involved in the anti-corruption institutional system, the package of projects proposes to establish a requirement to conduct integrity studies for prosecutors as well, which will help reduce corruption risks and strengthen integrity in the prosecution system.