The Varna Court of Appeal has referred the legal case concerning the powers of the acting Prosecutor General (a.g. Prosecutor General) to request the reopening of criminal cases after July 21, 2025, to the Constitutional Court (CC). The reason is a case on which the Varna Court of Appeal must rule.
The CC must rule on the constitutionality of a provision of the Law on the Judiciary (LJC) or interpret its effect over time. This concerns Art. 173, para. 15 of the LJC, which limits the term of office of the a.g. Prosecutor General to 6 months.
The legislator has not regulated the effect of the norm with respect to pending cases. The reason for referring the case to the CC is a request to reopen a case filed by the a.g. Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov after the expiry of the 6-month term. The court in Varna has different opinions on this matter.
The Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Cassation (SCC) believes that the powers of the a.g. Prosecutor General cease after 6 months. The Prosecutors' College of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) considers that the norm does not have retroactive effect and does not apply to current cases.
By the end of 2025, 11 requests for the reopening of criminal cases, prepared after July 21, 2025, by the a.g. Prosecutor General or his deputies, have been received in the Court of Appeal.