On November 13, 2023, a new initial training course for candidates to the positions of judge and prosecutor was launched at the National Institute of Justice. From the 45 trainees who have successfully passed the entrance exam, 30 will study to become a judge, and 15 – to become a prosecutor. The training process will start on November 16, 2023, according to the Initial training programme for the candidates to positions of judge and prosecutor.
The ceremony moderated by the ad interim Director of the National Institute of Justice, Ecaterina Popa, was attended by the key leaders of institutions in the justice sector, the diplomatic corps of the embassies of Romania and the USA in the Republic of Moldova, NIJ trainees and trainers.
In her speech, Ecaterina Popa mentioned the following: „The purpose of the initial training of future judges and prosecutors is essential: preparing a generation to represent the backbone of justice thus guaranteeing the rule of law in our society. Over the course of 18 months of training of candidates to the positions of judge and prosecutor, we will encourage an intensive study, based on process simulations and practical experiences that provide ample opportunities for development. I urge you, dear trainees, to see this learning opportunity as a path towards fair, transparent justice and compliance with the demands of European integration. Every effort made in this institution will contribute to the continuation of the reform process, including the achievement of the EU accession objective”.
„The justice reform and the fight against corruption are not only slogans, but country commitments, undertaken in the process of European integration. For these reasons, I urge you to be honest and always be guided by the spirit and letter of the law. The justice system needs judges and prosecutors prepared and determined to contribute to the changes in justice”, said in her speech, Veronica Mihailov-Moraru, Minister of Justice.
During the ceremony, with congratulatory messages and guidance to the trainees came Ion Munteanu, ad Interim Prosecutor General, Viorica Puica, ad Interim President of the Supreme Court of Justice, Ovidiu Viorel Naphataila, first co-rapporteur of the Romanian Embassy in the Republic of Moldova, Brett Rose, Director of the Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement Section of the U. S. Embassy in the Republic of Moldova, Diana Rotundu, President of the NIJ Council, Angela Motuzoc, President of the Superior Council of Prosecutors, Sergiu Caraman, ad Interim President of the Superior Council of Magistracy, Viorel Ciobanu, President of the Commission for the entrance exams 2023, and Ion Guzun, member of the Superior Council of Magistracy. Also, at the launch of the initial training course, spoke the representatives of the new generation of trainees of the National Institute of Justice – Ana-Maria Eloi, candidate to the position of judge, and Andrei Dubceac, candidate to the position of prosecutor.
We specify that, so far, the National Institute of Justice has offered the justice system 15 graduate promotions: 227 candidates to the position of judge and 321 – to the position of prosecutor. This year's entrance exams were attended by 109 contestants, of which 73 persons signed up for studies to the position of judge and 36 – for studies to the positions of prosecutor. In the current session of admission to the NIJ, the contestants held, in front of the admission committee, the psychological elimination test, the specialized test (grid test) and the oral test.
