Malta’s system of appointing judges - in which the country’s prime minister has decisive power in the process, while providing for an independent body to assess candidates and give an opinion - is not contrary to the EU Treaty (Article 19) or to the provisions of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights on the right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial (Article 47), the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled on Tuesday 20 April (Case C-896/19).
The Court, hearing a case brought...