Observations regarding a sentence ordering the transfer of the case in relation to the objective criteria

Abstract

The Cluj Court of Appeal admitted the request to transfer the case and ruled that in relation to the objective criteria developed in the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, the fact that the judge who discussed with the representative of the Public Ministry, outside the procedural framework, about the same legal issue as the one debated in court the same day, a discussion that was heard by the defendant’s lawyer, represents a verifiable factual element that can be invoked in support of the existence of a reasonable suspicion about the lack of impartiality of the judge. Likewise, the court ruled that the transfer request is admissible even in the situation where a suspicion of individual incompatibility was invoked, as long as the recusal request based on the same grounds was rejected, the transfer of the case thus remaining the only procedural remedy available to ensure the right to an impartial court.