President of the High Court of Cassation and Justice (ICCJ) Corina Corbu said on Wednesday on the occasion of the meeting for the review of the institution's 2019 activity that, to a certain degree, the Romanian society has a negative perception of the judiciary.
"I have never shunned from publicly stating things that are perhaps less pleasant. That's why I will now say that the Romanian society has a somewhat negative perception of the judiciary. And none of us is spotless in this regard. (...) The citizens, companies, non-governmental organizations directly feel the consequences of inflation and legislative inconsistency in particular areas, the negative consequences of the lengthier judicial procedures and implicitly of their costs, but also the risks created by the situations of non-unitary practice or by the impossibility to obtain a final settlement of a litigation within a reasonable time," said Corina Corbu.
The ICCJ president considers that all those with responsibilities in the field need to cooperate to improve the functioning of the Romanian judiciary.
"One thing is clear to all of us: the parties in court have the fundamental right to expect the judiciary to adequately address all these negative factors. And this answer, I believe, should consist in the proper handling of cases and not in window-dressing the effects. Combating the overloading of the Supreme Court, improving law quality and systematizing legislation in the deficient areas, improving free access to justice (...), ensuring a continuous connection of the judge to the development of the branches of law and to social evolution require all those involved in providing this public service to act in a coherent manner, and compatible and firm ways of action," said Corina Corbu.