Bill T/8016 currently before the Hungarian Parliament "may have a negative effect on the internal independence of courts and judges, and fair trial guarantees", warned the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, on Thursday 28 November.
This legislative text aims to amend several existing laws, including the law on the Constitutional Court, the law on the organisation and administration of the courts and the law on the legal status and remuneration of judges.
In her statement, Ms Mijatović "urges the Hungarian Parliament to carefully scrutinise the precise impact of the Bill and to carry out meaningful consultations with judicial professionals, experts and civil society representatives in view of modifying the text to ensure it does not negatively affect the independence of the judiciary and individual fair trial guarantees".
She also reiterated her "earlier recommendations on the need to strengthen collective judicial self-governance in Hungary, including the position and functions of the National Judicial Council" (see EUROPE 12192/33).
The statement by the Commissioner for Human Rights is in line with several other reactions to the extensive judicial reform initiated by the government of Viktor Orbán since 2010.
The Venice Commission, which brings together the Council of Europe's constitutional law experts, has been equally critical on several occasions (see EUROPE 12215/25). (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)