Judges slam minister over interference in their decision-making

The Czech Union of Judges has sharply protested against the arguments Justice Minister Pavel Blazek used to explain his refusal to name Ales Novotny a Brno Regional Court deputy head, and called these arguments "unacceptable and very dangerous for the future" in a statement sent to CTK on Monday. Blazek says Novotny's judicial decisions have repeatedly led to damage incurred to the state. The Judges' Union emphasised that the minister is neither empowered nor professionally competent to assess the individual judges' decision-making. "A possible emergence of the state responsibility for damage caused by a judge within their decision-making process can be assessed by no one else but a disciplinary panel [of judges]," Union President Libor Vavra wrote.