“The new civil code entered smoothly into force in October 2011 and the civil procedure code is foreseen to follow in June 2012. The acceleration of high-level corruption trials by the High Court of Cassation and Justice has helped to respond to the Commission’s recommendation concerning the risk of some high level corruption cases reaching statute-barred periods,” reads the report.
According to the EC, this measure might have a longer-run impact “in terms of streamlining the judicial process and securing timely final court decisions.”
The Commission also notes the draft law regarding extended confiscation has made progress in Parliament.
“The National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) and the National Integrity Agency (ANI) have continued to carry forward a series of important cases, including with regard to a significant number of senior politicians and officials. The new laws on the reform of appointments to the High Court of Cassation and Justice and on the disciplinary responsibility of magistrates set out frameworks which aim at more clarity and rigor,” reads the report.