Greater transparency in the nomination of judges to serve in international and EU courts
Government Communications Unit
Press Release 451/2006
7 December 2006
On Thursday 7 December, a proposal was submitted to Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen on developing the national procedure for nominating Finnish judges to serve in international and EU courts. The working group that looked into the matter was chaired by Chancellor of Justice, Paavo Nikula, and was composed of representatives from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice.
The working group proposes that any vacancies for judges or other similar judicial positions should always be made public. A specialist advisory committee should be appointed by the government for a six-year term to prepare nominations. The committee should consist of representatives from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Justice, the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court, and a representative of the centres engaged in judicial research and instruction at universities. The committee would assess the applicants and give an opinion on them, which would not be binding, however. The successful candidates would be nominated at a government plenary session on the basis of a presentation by the relevant ministry.
Under the working party’s proposal, provisions giving effect to the new procedure would be incorporated into the Act on Judicial Appointments. Further provisions concerning the appointment of the specialist advisory committee and the fulfilment of its duties could be laid down in a government decree.
It is proposed that the provisions be formulated in a way that enables them also to be applied to any international or EU-level judicial bodies established in the future.
Further information: Paavo Nikula, Chancellor of Justice, tel. +358 9 1602 3930, Seija Salo, Government Counsellor, Prime Minister’s Office, tel. +358 9 1602 4026, Anna-Elina Pohjolainen, Counsellor, Ministry of Justice, tel. +358 9 1606 7687 and Tapio Puurunen, Legislative Counsellor, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 9 1605 5588
Publication is available (in Finnish) via the website of the Prime Minister’s Office at: http://www.vnk.fi/julkaisut/julkaisusarja/julkaisu/fi.jsp?oid=173588(Link to another website.) (Opens New Window)