HUNGARY
Plans to set up a separate court system for lawsuits relating to Hungarian Government business have been described as the beginning of the end of judicial independence in the country.
The new administrative courts would be overseen by the Minister for Justice and would deal with lawsuits relating to Government business that are currently covered in the general legal system.
The legislation setting up the courts has yet to be debated in Parliament.
The European Union has criticised other legal measures pushed through by the Government led by Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, including the forced retirement of some judges.
In September, the European Parliament voted to impose sanctions on Hungary for flouting EU rules on democracy, civil rights and corruption.
The Government has rejected the accusations.
A spokesperson for Hungary’s leftist Opposition, the Democratic Coalition Party, said the new courts would let Ministers hand pick judges to hear legal challenges to State programs.
“The Government would end the independence of courts by setting up a new administrative court, in order to ensure that lawsuits against the State would land in the appropriate place, and the Orban regime would have the last say in the courts,” the party spokesperson said.
Minister for Justice, Laszlo Trocsanyi (pictured) told State Television the Opposition was “scaremongering”.
He said other European countries had similar administrative courts, and the reforms would ensure the country had a high quality of administrative justice.
“The model will respect judges’ independence … and at the same time will establish the Justice Minister’s political responsibility for the effective operation of administrative courts,” Mr Trocsanyi said.
Budapest, 9 November 2018
