Proposal to Lower Age Threshold for Judge Candidates from 28 to 25: Bill

The Ministry of Justice of Armenia has presented for public discussion a draft law on amendments and supplements to the Judicial Code, which includes several noteworthy changes regarding judges.

The draft proposes to lower the age threshold for judge candidates from 28 to 25. According to the authors of the draft, this change will allow the judicial system to engage young individuals who do not have questionable or discrediting connections, and who do not find themselves in dependence or links with other representatives of the system.

The Ministry of Justice, citing international experience, provides examples from Estonia, Norway, and Russia. Specifically, in Norway, the minimum age for judges in district and appellate courts is set at 25. The same age limit is established in Thailand, the Russian Federation, and Belarus.

The draft also clarifies the rules of conduct for judges and the grounds for imposing disciplinary liability. In particular, certain rules of conduct that are not disciplinary in nature but are ethical rules have been removed, as imposing disciplinary liability on judges for these, according to the ministry, is either unjustified or impossible due to the vague and excessively broad wording of the norm.

At the same time, new rules of conduct have been added, the violation of which calls into question a judge's independence, impartiality, and integrity, such as the requirement to present a complete declaration of property, income, and interests. The obligation for candidates for judges to declare their interests has also been provided for in the draft.

The scope of disciplinary penalties has been expanded in the draft. In particular, new intermediate penalties have been added to the existing law, which had only the mildest and most severe types of disciplinary penalties, to implement appropriate and proportional accountability measures. New types of penalties include a prohibition on inclusion in the list of candidates for judges eligible for promotion and removal from the position of chair of a court or chamber of the Court of Cassation.