ND: Constitutional crisis if High Court president, prosecutor are picked now

By George Gilson

A top advisor to main opposition New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis has warned that if the government during its last week in office appoints the new Supreme Court Chief Justice and Prosecutor after their term ends on 30 June and President Prokopis Pavlopoulos signs the necessary Presidential Decree, that could trigger a constitutional crisis.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Vasileios Peppas and Supreme Court Chief Prosecutor Xeni Dimitriou have both reached the age limit of 67 and are stepping down on 30 June.

Their successors are picked by an Act of the Cabinet which chooses from among three candidates chosen by an inter-party parliamentary conference and the Act is signed and sealed in a Presidential Decree.

George Gerapetritis, a constitutional law professor who has served as chief coordinator of Mitsotakis' advisors told Alpha television on 30 May that if Pavlopoulos signs the Presidential Decree approving appointments made by the government then the decree can be annulled by the Council of State on constitutional grounds.

That view was echoed verbatim in a statement issued by the party.

Role of Council of State

The Council of State cannot open a case of its own volition, but the Supreme Court justices and prosecutors who were not picked have a legal interest in the affair and can petition the Council of State to annul the Presidential Decree.

Gerapetritis appeared to suggest that that could well occur.

If the court strikes down the decree, all rulings passed by the Supreme Court from the time of their appointment could be declared null and void.

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