At the request of the President of the National Office for the Judiciary (NOJ) the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights has applied to the Constitutional Court regarding the legality of the operation of the National Judicial Council (NJC).

As it is well-known, the Act on the Organization and Administration of Courts regulates the number of members and alternate members of NJC as well as the proportion of each court level being represented in the Council. 17 of the 28 members and alternate members of the NJC resigned in spring 2018, therefore, - according to the NOJ – the operation of the NJC is not legal any more from that point.

For the  peaceful and predictable operation of the judicial system it is essential that the NJC’s operation is lawful. As the President of the NOJ is not entitled to apply directly to the Constitutional Court for the interpretation of the Fundamental Law of Hungary, the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights has been requested to do so in November 2018.

We trust that the decision of the Consitutional Court will help to terminate the public law debate ongoing for almost one year.