The High Court postpones for the sixth time the decision regarding judges’ and prosecutors’ salary arrears

On Thursday, the High Court of Cassation and Justice postponed until October 8 the delivery of its final decision in the case against the Government and the Ministry of Finance concerning the payment of salary arrears owed to judges. The Supreme Court won the case at first instance, and the financial stakes amount to approximately 5 billion lei.

Also on October 8, the judges are expected to rule on the Government’s requests to refer the case to the Constitutional Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union. This is the sixth postponement of the ruling in the case, which is currently at the appeal stage.

On May 5, the Bucharest Court of Appeal upheld the High Court’s action and ordered the Government and the Ministry of Finance to pay the outstanding salary entitlements, including through a budget rectification. The court set a 10-day deadline for enforcing the decision once it becomes final, as well as penalties for delays.

The arrears stem from 25% salary increases, established retroactively starting in 2018 following court rulings. The Government disputes the court’s authority to impose budget allocations and maintains that the budget falls within the responsibilities of the executive and legislative branches. On July 2, interim Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan announced that he would refer the matter to the Constitutional Court in a legal conflict with the High Court.