Language of document :

Request for a preliminary ruling from the Tribunalul Olt (Romania) lodged on 5 February 2019 — Asociația ‘Forumul Judecătorilor din România’ v Inspecția Judiciară

(Case C-83/19)

Language of the case: Romanian

Referring court

Tribunalul Olt

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Asociația ‘Forumul Judecătorilor din România’

Defendant: Inspecția Judiciară

Questions referred

Must the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM), established by Commission Decision 2006/928/EC of 13 December 2006, 1 be considered to be an act of an institution of the European Union, within the meaning of Article 267 TFEU, and therefore amenable to interpretation by the Court of Justice of the European Union?

Do the terms, nature and duration of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM), established by Commission Decision 2006/928/EC of 13 December 2006, come within the scope of application of the Treaty concerning the accession of the Republic of Bulgaria and Romania to the European Union, signed by Romania in Luxembourg on 25 April 2005? Are the requirements laid down in the reports prepared in the context of that mechanism binding on Romania?

Must the second subparagraph of Article 19(1) of the Treaty on European Union be interpreted as meaning that it obliges the Member States to take the measures necessary to ensure effective legal protection in the fields covered by EU law, that is to say, guarantees of an independent disciplinary procedure for Romanian judges, by eliminating all risks of political influence over the conduct of those procedures, such as direct Government appointment of the management of the Inspecția Judiciară (Judicial Inspection, Romania), even on a provisional basis?

Must Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union be interpreted as meaning that the Member States are obliged to comply with the rule of law criteria, also required in the reports prepared in the context of the cooperation and verification mechanism (CVM), established by Commission Decision 2006/928/EC of 13 December 2006, in the case of procedures whereby the Government directly appoints the management of the Inspecția Judiciară (Judicial Inspection, Romania), even on a provisional basis?

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1 Commission Decision of 13 December 2006 establishing a mechanism for cooperation and verification of progress in Romania to address specific benchmarks in the areas of judicial reform and the fight against corruption (OJ 2006 L 354, p. 56, Special edition: Chapter 11 Vol. 51 p. 55).