Romania’s justice system under further scrutiny as senior judge criticises ministerial decision to abolish department investigating judicial system crimes

In Romania, a battle is under way regarding the essential watchdog organisation that investigates crimes within the justice system. Known as the Special Section for Investigating Crimes in the Judicial System (SIJCO), the organisation is seen by many as an essential defence of the independence of the justice system during an era when Prosecutors have…

Băneasa case judge charged with abuse of office and Wrongfully Convicting Defendant #Romania

Judge Corneliu-Bogdan Ion-Tudoran, who ruled in Romania’s high profileBăneasareal estate development case,has been charged with wrongly convicting a defendant and for abuse of office for his conduct in the case. The Băneasa development involved businessman Gabriel Popoviciu and concerned 221 hectares which was owned by the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine (USAMV), through…

Senior Romanian prosecutors skipped professional exams and gained status granted by Ministerial decision

We are perhaps one step closer to understanding the conundrum in Romania that the country’s two biggest prosecution offices, the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) and the Section for the Investigation of Justice Criminal Offences (SIJJ), both bring a record number of cases, yet those same cases either fail or end with dubious results.   It…