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Criteria for monitoring the operation and activities of the National Judicial Council of Hungary

Over the past years, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee and Amnesty International Hungary as human rights watchdog organisations have been closely monitoring the situation of the Hungarian judiciary as part of their activity aimed at defending human rights and the rule of law. Besides keeping track of legislative changes affecting the courts, we also examine and evaluate the organisation of the judiciary, the activities and statements of court administration actors and judicial bodies. In line with our former practice, we will continue to monitor the activities of the National Judicial Council (NJC), the highest judicial self-governing body mandated to supervise the central administration of courts.

Translation is available for this content

Váltás magyarra

As a result of the election process due, as from 30 January 2024 the NJC continues to carry out its duties in a new composition. In addition to that, since 1 June 2023, the date of entry into force of Act X of 2023 on the Amendment of Certain Laws on Justice related to the Hungarian Recovery and Resilience Plan (the Judicial Reform), the NJC was granted legal personality, an autonomous budget and increased powers, including the right to propose legislation, comment on draft laws affecting the judiciary, have access to documents related to the administration of courts, consent to personnel matters and seek remedy against violations of its rights and competences. For this reason, it is particularly important to monitor how these powers are exercised by the NJC.

As the currently effective legal provisions establish a broad framework for the operation of the NJC as a body, its members have a wide margin of manoeuvre to define their operation, role and scope of supervision. Acknowledging that establishing the frameworks of the operation of this body is the shared task and responsibility of NJC members, based on the experience of the past years we consider it important to set out the standards and criteria under which, if met, we consider that the autonomy and uninfluenced operation of this body and the effective performance of its supervisory role is ensured from the perspective of judicial independence.

In line with the principle of judicial independence and the method of operating delineated by the best practices established during the former years of operation of the NCJ, the two civil society organisations prepared the criteria for monitoring the NJC’s supervisory function and its involvement in the administration of courts.

The criteria is available in English here.




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Hungarian Helsinki Committee