Bulgaria's justice minister will run a new selection procedure to find a Bulgarian judge for the EU General Court. The government gave him the task, his press office said, as quoted by the BTA news agency. The press office said the procedure is needed to fill the vacant Bulgarian seat.
The reason is the committee's negative opinion on Deyan Rusanov.
The ministry announced the first procedure on 7 April, for the seats of sitting judge Mariyana Kancheva, whose term expired on 1 September 2025, and Alexander Kornezov. In all, 17 people applied.
A selection panel appointed by the minister put forward two candidates, Ivan Stoynev and Deyan Rusanov. Both were heard by the committee set up under the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU.
In a letter to Bulgaria, the committee's chair gave a positive opinion on Ivan Stoynev's fitness to serve as a judge at the General Court. On 30 September 2026, the conference of representatives of the member states' governments approved his appointment. Judges are appointed by common accord of the member states.
When the new procedure ends, the candidate will be put forward to the General Secretariat of the Council of the EU.