Romanian businessman Gabriel ‘Puiu’ Popoviciu’s lengthy legal battle has reached a final conclusion with a robust and final decision in his favour. On 15 January 2025, Romania’s High Court of Cassation and Justice, Romania’s equivalent of a Supreme Court, upheld an earlier decision by the Bucharest Court of Appeal in July 2024 to completely acquit…
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caught Europe unawares, without an understanding of the full implications of the war and its effect on members of NATO and the European Union. On Day 15 of this unprovoked war of aggression from Russia, the number of migrants fleeing the conflict is in the hundreds of thousands. Europe hasn’t seen…
The European Court of Human Rights has issued a review of 2021. In 2021 the Court ruled on more than 36,000 applications. The number of Grand Chamber or Chamber judgments rose to 428 (relating to 1,037 applications), an increase of 9% compared to 2020. At the end of 2020 there were 62,000 pending applications. At…
One of the most significant rulings in 2021, for those who keep a close eye on human rights, was the decision by the High Court of Justice inLondon that Romanian businessman Gabriel Popoviciu must not be extradited to Romania, highlighting concerns about Romania’s legal system. Popoviciu’s case drew attention to the fact that the Romania…
Romania is suffering a multitude of crises as energy prices soar, Covid-19 infection rates are rising to worrying levels, a potential new prime minister is struggling to form a government and the country’s justice system has faced strong criticism in the UK’s High Court of Justice as the judge refused to allow Gabriel Popoviciu to…
The High Court decision in London that Romanian businessman Gabriel Popoviciu must not be extradited to Romania highlighted concerns about that country’s legal system. Popoviciu’s case exposed that the Romania legal system does not meet the standards expected of a country with membership of the European Union. The robust judgment from the appeal court went…
On 11 June 2021, the High Court in London handed down judgment quashing an order for the extradition to Romania of Mr Gabriel Popoviciu, a high-profile, successful Romanian businessman. The Court described Mr Popoviciu’s case as “extraordinary”. The Court found that there was credible evidence to show that the trial judge who convicted Mr Popoviciu…
In 2020, according to the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, China and Central and Eastern European countries (CEE) saw their trade value cross US $100 billion for the first time, writes Dr Jianli Yang. The Chinese media lauded this development, deeming it a ‘role model’ in a time when regional cooperation has taken a hit. It…
Between 9-11 March, the representatives of the 47 member states of the Council of Europe met to examine the implementation of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, in accordance with the supervisory role of the Committee of Ministers under Article 46 of the European Convention on Human Rights. On the agenda was Romania and…
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…
