Large-scale reform of the structure of the judiciary in Cyprus
Dr. Marina Himoni
With the passage of four pieces of legislation, including the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, by the Plenary of the House of Representatives, a large-scale reform of the structure of the judiciary in Cyprus is being implemented.
The most substantial change concerns the creation of an Administrative Court of Appeal as an autonomous second-instance court, which assumes review jurisdiction in administrative cases. Thus, the current Court of Appeal will from now on focus exclusively on civil and criminal cases.
At the same time, the judicial hierarchy is being redefined through the creation of two top judicial bodies with distinct responsibilities. The Administrative Court, the Administrative Court of International Protection and the new Administrative Court of Appeal now fall under the Supreme Constitutional Court, while the District Courts, the special jurisdiction Courts and the Court of Appeal fall under the Supreme Court.
The reform also includes the establishment of two supreme judicial councils: the Supreme Constitutional Judicial Council, which will be responsible for administrative courts, and the Supreme Judicial Council, which will deal with issues related to civil and criminal justice. The decisions of each Council will be subject to review by the corresponding second-instance body in cases of opposition.
In addition, by amending the relevant law, it is provided that pending cases of second-instance review jurisdiction, which were filed before the 31st of December 2021 and are still pending in the Court of Appeal and for which judgment has not been issued yet, they will be transferred to the Supreme Constitutional Court. A similar provision was adopted for pending recourses against decisions of the Supreme Judicial Council, which will be referred to the Supreme Constitutional Judicial Council.
Significant changes also concern the criteria for appointment to the Supreme Constitutional Court, as combined expertise in Constitutional and Administrative Law is no longer required, but knowledge in one of the two. The list of instances in which a Supreme Court judge may try a case on a single bench is also expanded, while it is explicitly provided that the judges of the Administrative Court will not be interchangeable.
For further information on this topic please contact Dr. Pavlos Neofytou Kourtellos and/or Dr. Marina Himoni at P. N. KOURTELLOS & ASSOCIATES LLC, by telephone: +357 25 745575 or by e-mail: pnk@kourtelaw.com and/or mh@kourtelaw.com
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