Magistrates Vasile Șchiopu, Ioana Chironeț, Sergiu Caraman and Maria Frunze are permanent members of the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM), elected on Friday 28 April by the General Assembly of Judges for a six-year term. Livia Mitrofan from the Chisinau Court of Justice, Centre seat, was elected as an alternate member of the SCM.

Vasile Șchiopu received 220 votes, Ioana Chironeț – 215 votes, Maria Frunze – 158 votes, Sergiu Caraman – 185 votes and Livia Mitrofan – 148 votes.

New members of the SCM from among the judges

Vasile Șchiopu has been a judge since 2003. Since 2012, for two terms, he has held the position of President of the Ungheni Court. In a decision issued on 5 January 2023, the Pre Vetting Commission established that the magistrate “meets the criteria of ethical and financial integrity”.

During the hearings the candidate was asked about the purchase of an apartment at a preferential price and the source of financial means, about donations to his son, about declaring the value of a car and about declaring bank accounts in the manner prescribed by law.

The Commission established that on 7 June 2022 the candidate purchased a 74.2 square metre apartment in Chisinau. This apartment was purchased at a preferential price under the programme for improving the living conditions of judges, implemented by the Superior Council of Magistracy – 31 thousand euros, equivalent to about 635 thousand lei. The judge told Commission members that he applied for improved living conditions because he aspired to become a judge at the SCJ or a member of the SCM, both institutions based in Chisinau, where he had no place to live.

Ioana Chironeț passed the Pre-Vetting Commission’s evaluation following the decision of 26 October 2022. Chironeț has been a judge since 2015, but since 2018 she has been working as a judge inspector in the Judicial Inspectorate of the SCM, a position she previously held. Between 2012 and 2015 she was head of the SCM secretariat.

During the hearing the candidate was questioned about four financial issues: failure to declare a loan, failure to declare two bank accounts in the manner required by law, failure to declare the correct price for the sale of three pieces of land and receiving an amount different from the contract value. The Commission had no serious doubts about any aspect of the candidate’s ethical integrity.

Maria Frunze passed the Pre-Vetting Committee’s assessment by decision of 25 October 2022. Frunze has been a judge at the Chisinau Court of Appeals since 2017. Previously she was a court clerk and judicial assistant.

The Commissioners found no violation of the law with respect to her, and the Commission had no questions for the candidate at her hearing in October 2022. “The Commission asked the candidate a limited number of questions on financial matters. The applicant responded in a timely manner, providing the Commission with all the necessary answers and documentation. Based on the information provided by the candidate and the other information available to the Commission, the Commission has no serious doubts as to the candidate’s compliance with the financial integrity criterion. Moreover, the Commission has no serious doubts as to the candidate’s compliance with the criterion of ethical integrity”, reads the Commission decision by which Maria Frunze passed the assessment.

Sergiu Caraman has been a judge since 2012. He served in Soroca, and since 2018 he is a judge in Criuleni. Previously he worked in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Centre for Combating Economic Crimes and Corruption, the current NAC.

Caraman passed the evaluation by Commission decision of 29 December 2022. During the hearings the candidate was asked about his wife’s failure to declare her bank accounts in the manner prescribed by the legislation.

The Commission established that the judge and his wife were married in September 2014, and in 2014 and 2015 the candidate’s wife had three bank accounts, which he did not disclose in his asset declarations filed in those years. “The candidate provided detailed answers regarding his wife’s bank accounts both in the written proceedings and at the hearings. After examining the bank statements from these bank accounts provided by the candidate, the Commission was able to establish both the nature and the level of financial flows into the candidate’s wife’s bank accounts. The Commission did not find any suspicious or dubious bank transactions, undeclared sources of funds or other bank accounts belonging to the candidate or his wife that were subject to disclosure,” the Commissioners said.

Livia Mitrofan, alternate member of the SCM

Livia Mitrofan has been a judge since 2017. Previously (2008-2012) she worked at the Ministry of Justice. On 25 October 2022, the Independent Integrity Assessment Commission for candidates for membership in the self-administrative bodies of judges and prosecutors established that Mitrofan meets the criteria of ethical and financial integrity and thus passes the assessment.

During the hearing, the candidate was asked about the sources for the purchase of a 45.7-square-meter apartment located in Chisinau and the declared value of the Mercedes Vaneo car, manufactured in 2004 and purchased in 2012. The Commission had no serious doubts about any aspect of the candidate’s ethical integrity.

The battle for the SCM: who are the five judges fighting for four vacant posts and how they managed to pass the Pre-Vetting Commission’s assessment
On Friday 28 April, the General Assembly of Judges convened for a meeting, after a vote to adjourn the meeting on 17 March. The General Assembly of Judges was held in the Organ Hall in Chisinau, where more than 300 judges voted for the election of the SCM members.

On 30 March , Tatiana Ciaglic, Ion Guzun and Alexandru Postica were appointed to the SCM for a six-year term of office. The draft resolutions were approved in plenary session. Sixty-three MEPs voted in favour of Ion Guzun’s candidacy, 62 for Alexandru Postica and 63 for Tatiana Ciaglic.

The latest amendments to the law on the SCM stipulate that the new SCM will be composed of 12 members: six career judges, representing the judiciary proportionally: four – from the courts, one – from the courts of appeal and one – from the SCJ, as well as six members of civil society, voted by the Parliament, after they also pass the evaluation of the Pre-Vetting Commission.

The article was developed within the framework of the Project “Accountability of the Justice Sector in Moldova”, implemented by the Centre for Analysis and Prevention of Corruption, with the support of Freedom House in Moldova. The views expressed reflect the position of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the funder.