Moldova Starts Replacing Discredited Constitutional Court Judges

Parliament in Moldova has elected two new Constitutional Court judges to replace the six who quit in June – following accusations that they had issued politicized rulings at the behest of the then ruling Democratic Party.

The main Constantin Stere hall of the Moldovan Constitutional Court. Photo: Moldovan Constitutional Court’s official website

The first two new Constitutional Court judges in Moldova were elected on Thursday by parliament after all six former holders of the posts resigned in June, following accusations by the new government under Maia Sandu that they had repeatedly ruled in favour of the former governing Democratic Party.

The 16 candidates for the posts had to pass through a competition involving two exams and an interview.

The first judge elected on Thursday, Nicolae Esanu, is currently secretary of state at the Justice Ministry. He is a member of the Venice Commission on behalf of Moldova. From 2004 to 2009, he was a deputy justice minister in the then Communist-led government.

The second elected candidate is a lawyer, Vladimir Grosu. A former justice minister, from 2013 to 2017 he was another member of the Venice Commission.

The Moldovan Constitutional Court comprises six judges: two are appointed by parliament, two by the government and two by the Superior Council of Magistracy. Four judges have yet to be appointed.

All six former judges at the Constitutional Court resigned in June after the fall of the government led by the Democratic Party under Prime Minister Pavel Filip.

During the last days of the Pavel government in June, the Constitutional Court issued controversial rulings that were characterized by the Venice Commission as “without precedent”.

One was that the new government under Sandu, which unites pro-EU and pro-Moscow elements, had been formed illegally. It was later established that this ruling had no legal ground.

The previous judges were accused of issuing other politically motivated decisions under the influence of the Democratic Party, creating a biased image of the institution.

“The latest events have shown that it is crucial that Constitutional Court judges watch over the Constitution and ensure that Moldova remains a democratic state, regardless of the political actors in power,” Prime Minister Sandu said on June 27.

She maintained that “cleaning up state institutions is only the first step to eliminating corruption and abuse – and for this process to be sustainable and ensure the democratization and modernization of the country in an irreversible manner”.