Today, on 11.03.2022, at 10:00, the Appeal Chamber held the public plenary session of case (JD) no. 2/2021, dated 26.03.2021, corresponding to the appeal of the petitioner Markelian Kuqo, against decision no. 633, dated 10.12. 2020 of the High Judicial Council, “On the imposition of a disciplinary measure against Judge Markelian Kuqo”, and interested parties, the High Judicial Council and the High Inspector of Justice.
Following the previous hearing, the representative of the High Judicial Council and the representatives of the High Inspector of Justice responded to the appellant’s questions concerning the circumstances that led to decision no. 633, dated 10.12.2020 of the High Judicial Council “On the imposition of the disciplinary measure against Judge Markelian Kuqo”.
The appellant, Mr. Markelian Kuqo submitted his counter-arguments related only to certain responses of the interested subjects, and requested: making available the audio cd of a hearing on his account held before the High Judicial Council, on December 10, 2020, and the appropriate time to address his submissions regarding the remainder of the responses of the interested parties.
After hearing the position of the interested parties, who considered inadmissible both requests of the appellant, the trial panel decided to reject the first request, considering that it is required to produce a circumstance that did not occur during the disciplinary proceedings at the HJC. The trial panel decided to reject the second request as well, inviting the appellant to take a position on the remaining responses following today’s hearing.
The appellant, Mr. Markelian Kuqo refused to submit his position on the remaining responses during today’s hearing, but requested the administration as evidence of the submissions as far as he submitted already.
Referring to the circumstances of the case under review, the lack of the final and complete control of the judicial system over the sole decision-making of the magistrate considered to have constituted a disciplinary misconduct, interpretation and analysis of the criminal law with respect to the case in question, in the absence of a unified case-law by the High Court, considering that a decision on the appellant’s disciplinary proceedings would be exposed without a final position of the High Court on the matter – as the competent court for matters of law – pursuant to Article 1, second paragraph of Law no. 8577, dated 10.02.2000 “On the organization and functioning of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Albania”, as amended, and Article 297 (a) of the Civil Procedure Code, by a majority vote, the Appeal Chamber decided:
- To suspend the trial of the disciplinary jurisdiction case no. 2/2021, pertaining to the appellant Markelian Kuqo, until the final resolution of the penal case related the appeal of the citizen G. Gj at the High Court.
- To notify this decision to the High Court.
The next public hearing will take place in the premises of the Appeal Chamber, at: Boulevard “Dëshmorët e Kombit”, no.3, Tirana.