The Chair of the Constitutional Court, Pavlina Panova, sent an order to the submitter
In view of media publications and inquiries, the Constitutional Court specifies that the President of the Constitutional Court, Pavlina Panova, has sent an order - https://www.constcourt.bg/bg/act-10230, to the Varna Court of Appeal (VCA). The order gives a 14-day deadline for the removal of irregularities in a request from the judicial panel of the Varna Court of Appeal in accordance with the grounds stated in the order.
The panel of judges of the Varna Court of Appeals referred the matter to the Constitutional Court on the basis of Article 150, paragraph 2 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria (CRB) with the following request: "1. Does Article 173, paragraph 15 of the Judicial System Act (published in State Gazette No. 6 of 2025, in force since 21 January 2025) contradict the Constitution? 2. Should Article 173(15) of the ZSV be interpreted as: a) a provision with prospective effect that does not affect existing cases, or b) a provision whose effects also cover persons appointed to perform the functions of Chief Prosecutor before its entry into force?"
In her order, the President of the Constitutional Court, Pavlina Panova, states that, upon reviewing the regularity of the request, she has found that it does not meet the requirements of Article 17, paragraph 1 of the Constitutional Court Act (CCA) and Article 18, paragraphs 1 and 2, points 4 and 5 of the Rules of Procedure of the Constitutional Court (RPC) regarding its reasoning and the substance of the request.
"When referring a case to the Constitutional Court on the basis of Article 150(2) of the Constitution for the exercise of its powers under Article 149(1)(2) of the Constitution, the referring entity – the judicial panel before which the specific case is pending – shall present arguments for the inconsistency it has established between the law applicable to the resolution of the dispute in the case and the Constitution, rather than for the "doubt that has arisen," by referring to the Constitutional Court the question of whether a legal provision is contrary to the Constitution. In addition, the request must clearly indicate which constitutional provisions the legal text contradicts, setting out the arguments of the referring court for this contradiction. The request does not contain arguments for the circumstances mentioned, and therefore does not meet the condition of Article 18, paragraph 2, item 5 of the PDSK, insofar as its content does not make clear what it consists of. The submitter is obliged to outline the subject matter of the request in an unambiguous manner," the order specifies.
It further states that "Given the reasons set out in the request, the second part of the request lacks clarity as to its subject matter, insofar as it cannot be established with certainty which constitutional provision the Court is required to interpret. Pursuant to Article 149(1)(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria, the Constitutional Court shall give binding interpretations of the Constitution only at the request of the entities specified in Article 150(1) of the Constitution. The Court interprets only constitutional provisions because only the Constitution is specified as the subject of binding interpretation. The request does not specify a separate provision or provisions of the Constitution that the submitter wishes to have interpreted in order to establish their scope and meaning, but rather seeks answers to specific questions regarding a legal provision.
If the instructions are followed, a constitutional case will be initiated. According to Article 19, paragraph 2 of the Rules of Procedure of the Constitutional Court (PODKS), if the referring body or persons do not remedy the deficiencies in the request within the time limit given to them, the president shall schedule a meeting of the Constitutional Court, which shall decide whether to return the request.