ZAGREB, 6 Oct, 2021 - President Zoran Milanović said on Wednesday he supported the announcement that the parliamentary majority will select Radovan Dobronić, his candidate, for Supreme Court president, adding that they could have done this last spring.

Speaking to the press, he said they could have done that "last spring at least" instead of "haggling" over it for seven months as it was clear that he would not recommend any current Supreme Court member for that position.

Appointment of new ambassadors "dramatically late"

He denied that it had anything to do with agreeing on new ambassadors, saying their appointment, "which is important, is dramatically late. I don't know why. We started talking and then it stopped at the will of the (foreign) minister. I hope he will get in touch now."

The president said he had not noticed that it was a question of bargaining and wondered "what's the point of this splitting of hairs" since they must reach an agreement eventually.

Initial conflict of interest law imposed from Brussels

Asked to comment on Reformists leader Radimir Čačić's statement that a new conflict of interest law would give the Conflict of Interest Commission deep access to Tax Administration data, Milanović said the initial law from 2011, adopted as part of the negotiations on EU accession, was completely imposed from Brussels.

He said Brussels "experimented" on Croatia, which had to adopt a model that was "not good."

"It's used for political manipulation," he said, adding that some of the Commission's past members "were brought to that Commission as so-called experts and became politicians from the bushes. Undercover politicians one minute, and later politicians. That's unfair."

He said the system in which MPs were overseeing conflict of interest through peer control was not perfect but was more correct.

Nobody has the right to check people's accounts, only courts

The president said nobody had the right to check people's accounts unless it was done under the Criminal Procedure Act. "No commission, nobody. No commissaries, police officers, solely the courts.

ZAGREB, 6 Oct, 2021 - The parliamentary Judiciary Committee on Wednesday gave a positive opinion on judges Radovan Dobronić and Marin Mrčela as candidates for Supreme Court president while Dobronić, whom the President already announced as his recommendation to the Sabor, received unanimous support from the committee.

The committee that interviewed candidates at the start of September unanimously supported Judge Dobronić with 11 votes while Mrčela received seven votes in favour, one against (Nikola Grmoja) and three abstentions.

The Judiciary Committee will forward its opinion to President Zoran Milanović, who then recommends his candidate to the Sabor. The President has previously said that his candidate will be Zagreb Commercial Court Judge Dobronić, known in public as the judge who presided in the case against banks over Swiss francs.

This means the end of the crisis in appointing the highest position in the judiciary.

The selection of a new president for the Supreme Court has gone through three public calls, with five candidates applying in the last one - Judge Dobronić, Supreme Court acting president Marin Mrčela, Judge Lana Peto Kujundžić, and attorneys Šime Savić and Barbara Gundić. 

The president of the Supreme Court is appointed and relieved by the Sabor following a previous opinions by the court's general assembly and the parliamentary Judiciary Committee, at the recommendation of the President. The court president is appointed for a term of four years and can be reappointed for only one more four-year term.

Judge Mrčela was given 29 votes from judges on the Supreme Court general assembly in early September, while Judge Dobronić was given four votes.

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ZAGREB, 28 Sept, 2021 - Justice Minister Ivan Malenica said on Tuesday amendments to the laws on courts and the State Attorney's Office would soon be put to public consultation, adding that obliging judicial officials by law to say if they were members of any organisations was being considered.

He was asked by the press about the possibility of introducing that obligation for judges and state attorneys following the case of former attorney general Dražen Jelenić.

Jelenić resigned from that post in February 2020 after it was discovered that he was a member of a Masonic lodge. His successor Zlata Hrvoj Šipek requested disciplinary action against Jelenić and that he be suspended as her deputy.

"There is no such obligation now. There is a code of ethics which sets certain principles. State attorneys and judges should certainly remove any possibility which might influence their impartiality or jeopardise their independence," said Malenica.

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ZAGREB, 10 Sept 2021 - The parliamentary Judiciary Committee will vote at a later date on candidates for the Supreme Court president due to a dispute over disciplinary proceedings launched before the State Judicial Council (DSV) against President Zoran Milanović's candidate for the post, Judge Radovan Dobronić.

After five candidates presented their programmes and answered questions from members of the Judiciary Committee for seven hours on Thursday, Committee members decided to postpone the vote at the proposal of MP Krunoslav Katičić of the ruling HDZ party, who said that before taking the vote the Committee should have all information regarding disciplinary proceedings against Dobronić.

The Committee, whose decision is non-binding on the constitutional proposer of the candidate for the Supreme Court head, President Zoran Milanović, on Thursday interviewed Dobronić, Barbara Gundić, Marin Mrčela, Lana Petö Kujundžić and Šime Savić.

Dobronić: Judiciary has lost minimum trust of citizens

In his address to the Committee, Dobronić said that the judiciary has lost the minimum trust of citizens but that it is not true that judges are lazy and that the system is being blocked by a large number of cases.

Between 200,000 and 300,000 cases are related to the state or state-owned companies, he said, noting that the situation could be improved significantly by improving governance at the central and local levels.

Asked by HDZ MP Dražen Bošnjaković how he would deal with the problem of corruption in the judiciary, Dobronić said that more than 90% of judges work in good faith but that the judiciary, as a branch of government, should be 100% vetted.

"No judge must make an omission. The corruption rate among judges is not even 1-2%, but that undermines trust in the system," he said, adding that Croatian judges are also EU judges and their decisions have far-reaching consequences.

Asked by HDZ MP Damir Habijan which measures he would introduce if he was elected Supreme Court president, Dobronić cited reorganisation of the judiciary, education for business people, changes to the system of public notaries, and the reorganisation of work regarding complaints, which, he said, would reduce the number of cases by 30-50%.

Dobronić says learned about disciplinary proceedings from reporters

HDZ MP Marija Jelkovac wanted to know about disciplinary proceedings launched against him for "lack of due diligence in performing his duties as a judge". Dobronić said that he had been informed about the proceedings by reporters and that in 2019, the year in question, he worked on old cases, appeals and other judges' cases and that the time spent on that type of work was not taken into account.

"I do not feel affected by it (disciplinary proceedings) because it is completely beside the mark and wrong," he said, noting that there is an awareness of this problem in the judiciary and that he intends to deal with it by introducing controls of the quality of performance.

Asked by Bridge MP Nikola Grmoja to assess the system of allocation of cases to judges, Dobrinić said that judges themselves do not understand the criteria under which they are given individual cases.

"I do not know if that is abused in individual cases, but the system can be better programmed," he said.

Asked by HDZ MP Ljubica Lukačić what he could do to make the judiciary available to everyone, Dobronić said that the practice of judges writing complaints for citizens free of charge on certain days is a good legacy of the previous, Socialist system and that it could be reintroduced.

Judges must focus on merits of case

Social Democrat MP Vesna Nađ asked Dobronić where he saw resistance and where allies in the implementation of reforms, to which he said that resistance can happen at any level. 

He also noted that enforcement judges should focus "on the merits of a case rather than nitpick over every single kuna."

Zlata Đurđević, President Milanović's previous candidate for Supreme Court president and external member of the Judiciary Committee, raised the issue of the State Judicial Council's work.

"It should definitely be defined in a different way. It has never been discussed what to do when someone constantly writes reasonings of judgements that make no sense," he said.

Speaking of uneven court practice, which he considers one of the main issues, Dobronić said that it happens because judges make a large number of decisions, but he recalled that departments have been established to monitor case law and warn a judge if their predecessor has already made a ruling in a similar case.

"Judges should discuss their cases more with one another and share their experience," he said.

Asked by Homeland Movement MP Stephen Nikola Bartulica if he believed that in Croatia the process of lustration had been carried out, Dobronić said that some judges had been treated unfairly in both systems.

Mrčela: Belittling of judges comes from politicians

Presenting his programme, the acting President of the Supreme Court, Marin Mrčela, said that the head of the highest court in the country is neither a radical nor a revolutionary but that he or she can initiate steps to improve the situation in the judiciary.

Noting that his programme contains 39 such measures, he said that there are 22 key problems in the judiciary, singling out the length of proceedings, public perception of the judiciary and the atmosphere in which it is normal to belittle judges' decisions.

In that regard, he also mentioned insufficient economic and human resources, too broad jurisdiction of courts, the platitude about the existence of a judicial clique and the autism of judges, and judges' affiliation to political groups, which he said is untrue.

Mrčela said that the belittling of judges comes from politicians, including high-level ones, and that messages in the media saying that "judges and politicians should be killed" should be taken seriously. "The problems of the judiciary, the length of proceedings, immorality and even corruption, should not be cause for political influence on the judiciary."

Asked by Dražen Bošnjaković (HDZ) whether the legal provision on legal protection and allowing the Supreme Court to standardise case law of criminal courts should be changed, Mrčela said that he does not agree with the proposal by former Supreme Court President Đuro Sessa that it should be changed. "We only need to leave open the possibility for the Supreme Court to standardise case law using extraordinary remedies, as has been the case so far."

Independent MP Karolina Vidović Krišto was interested in Mrčela's opinion on civil society organisations that protect victims of paedophilia, which claim that sentences handed down by the Supreme Court against paedophiles are too lenient. "I will personally advocate for all criminal cases to be analysed. Punishment must not be an expression of anger, but of careful thinking on the part of judges in deciding on a sentence," Mrčela said.

Speaking of the length of proceedings, Mrčela said that court presidents have the authority to order a case to be dealt with within the shortest time possible, and that such deadlines should be instructive. He concluded by saying that it would be good if politicians did not comment on specific cases.

High Criminal Court Judge Lana Petö Kujundžić said while presenting her programme that the Supreme Court must be efficient, fast and expeditious in dealing with cases and that it must use its authority to make this possible for other courts as well. She stressed the importance of all courts having equal technical equipment, and added that courts must be more open to the public in order to change public perception of the judiciary. She expressed concern about judicial administrative staff being underpaid.

Presenting his programme, Zagreb lawyer Šime Savić commented on the assessment made by the general session of the Supreme Court that he is insufficiently competent for the post of Supreme Court President. He said that with his election the Supreme Court would get the best president. As the only candidate to have responded to all three public calls for applications, at the end of the marathon hearing he said that they would meet again for a forth time.

A candidate for Supreme Court President is proposed by the President of the Republic after a prior advisory opinion from the parliamentary Judiciary Committee and a general meeting of the Supreme Court. At the Supreme Court's general meeting held early this month, Mrčela received 29 votes, Dobronić received four, while the other candidates did not receive any votes.

Milanović has said earlier that Dobronić, who is known for his judgment against banks in the case of CHF-denominated loans, is his candidate, while the parliamentary majority has announced that they will decide on the candidates after the decision by the Judiciary Committee and the general meeting of the Supreme Court.

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ZAGREB, 21 July, 2021 - Justice and Public Administration Minister Ivan Malenica said on Wednesday that Croatia has not disgraced itself before Europe by failing to appoint a Supreme Court president, adding that he expected the best candidates to apply for the post and the president to recommend a new candidate as soon as possible.

"The European Commission clearly said in this year's rule-of-law report on Croatia that there are certain controversies and that there is a certain disparagement of some judges. We know who that comes from, it certainly didn't come from the government," Malenica told the press.

He said the Commission's report was measured and that, to a large extent, it provided a fair overview of the situation, recognising certain shortcomings and confirming certain improvements.

Malenica said the shortcomings concerned the length of proceedings and backlogs.

"However, the report says that certain progress has been made in that area by shortening court proceedings and gradually reducing backlogs," he said, adding that the Commission highlighted as improvements an increase in transparency via the publication of officials' declarations of assets, further investment in the digitalisation of the justice system, and the gradual strengthening of judicial bodies' capacities.

The investigation and prosecution of corruption crimes have also been highlighted as an improvement, the minister added.

After last year's report, he said, the Justice Ministry undertook certain activities to amend legislation with a view to reducing backlogs and the length of proceedings.

Croatia has no problem with rule of law, but there is room for progress

"Croatia is not ranked among countries that have problems with the rule of law and it is not being discussed in the European Parliament nor has it been exposed to special resolutions being adopted, as is the case with Bulgaria, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia," Malenica said, adding that room for progress existed.

"We are confident that, through the National Resilience and Recovery Plan, in which we envisaged 13 reforms and six investments, the image of the situation in the Croatian judiciary will additionally improve."

Asked about the dismissal of SLAPP lawsuits against journalists, Malenica said they should be viewed in a broader context.

"The Culture and Media Ministry has formed a task force to deal with that issue... This government and the Culture and Media Ministry are willing to consider the issue of SLAPP lawsuits in a wider task force."

He said that last year there were 250 of these lawsuits but he could not say how many were upheld.

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ZAGREB, 15 June, 2021 - Zlata Đurđević, a candidate for the Supreme Court president, said on Tuesday that corporatism, denoting a closed professional group with privileges without any external oversight, was the main problem of the Croatian judiciary.

"It is important to achieve a balance between judicial autonomy and judicial responsibility for the sake of avoiding corporatism. That is not talked about in Croatia, and when someone speaks up about it, it is considered a taboo and an insult even though both GRECO and the Venice Commission have pointed to the problem of corporatism," Đurđević said at a panel discussion entitled "Judiciary and public: Ensuring responsible and transparent administration of justice".

Đurđević believes that the main cause of judicial corporatism is the fact that two-thirds of the State Judicial Council (DSV) members are judges, and that in appointing judges, external excellence criteria are disregarded while what is taken into account are the test and the job interview but not one's performance as an undergraduate, which is why other institutions have no influence on whether a judge is sufficiently competent.

State responsible for judges' work

"There is no public discussion about the candidates, voting is secret but the DSV president knows how DSV members have voted," she said, stressing that judges are government employees and the state is responsible for their work, materially and before international courts, since the government represents the state before the European Court of Human Rights.

Principle of publicity one of most important

The head of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts (HAZU) Council for State Administration, Judiciary and Rule of Law, Jakša Barbić, stressed that the principle of publicity was one of the most important guarantees that judges and courts acted in line with their social role and functions.

"Trials must be public. It is not enough to administer justice, it is also important that everyone is aware and knows that it is administered, which is why all rulings should be made public and easily searchable," he said.

He noted that the actual state of court efficiency was determined, among other things, based on the number of accepted court rulings and that one should not base their opinion about the judiciary on cases that cause public disapproval.

Speakers at the panel and participants in the subsequent discussion were agreed that there is a tendency on the part of the judiciary to close itself off from the public and treat negatively any public criticism of the judiciary. It was also stressed that judicial officials brand criticism as populism, dismissing even well-intentioned warnings about rulings that are legally and socially deeply unacceptable.

This results, it was said, in antagonism between the judiciary and the public and a very low level of public trust in and respect for the judiciary.

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