By Ioanna Mandrou

In meritocratic choices for the leadership of political and criminal justice, the government proceeded, as with the decision of the cabinet new president of the Supreme Court areopagite was defined Ioanna Klapa and Prosecutor and Deputy Prosecutor of the Supreme Court, Georgia Adelini.

The cabinet decision was taken after relevant proposal of the Minister of Justice Giorgos Floridis.

Both top justices who will lead the Supreme Court and the entire criminal and civil justice system will remain in their posts for two more years, as they both retire in 2025.

Their choice it took place among excellent judicial and prosecutorial officers with the main criterion being their ability, their legal training, their successful judicial journey and their ability to support the institutional changes announced by the Prime Minister for justice, in an effort to deeply modernize and technologically upgrade it.

The new President of the Supreme Court with a long and successful legal career, has handled important cases at all stages of its judicial journey while she distinguished herself as an investigator (together with Maria Dimitropoulou) in the much-lauded case of the AXA, with the prosecutor at the time, the now honorary prosecutor of the Supreme Court, Isidoros Dogiakos.

Ioanna Klapa also played out important role, together with other supreme judges, as a member of the A1 Department of the supreme court for the prohibition of participating in the elections of the prisoner former member of the ACA Ilias Kasidiaris.

The new president stands out for her determination, her hard work and, in general, her professional competence.

As for the new prosecutor of the Supreme Court, Georgia Adelini, which swept the recent hearing of senior prosecutors at the Institutions and Transparency Committee (gathered a record number of votes, 21 in total as it was also voted for by opposition parties) she is a public prosecutor with high prestige, legal knowledge, prudence and professional competence.

He held critical positionsoccasionally, with the most important being that of the prosecutor of the EYP during the SYRIZA government but also subsequently for a time during the government of the New Republic.

Also from time to time as a deputy prosecutor of the supreme court has handled sensitive issues, such as minors and delinquency issues in critical areas. It stands out for its effectiveness despite its low profile.

The government was led to choose the Adeline – Klapa as he decided not to choose leadership in the supreme court for a single year, thus excluding from the selection worthy, capable and important judges such as Nikolaos Pipiligas and Georgios Christodoulou who are currently vice presidents of the Supreme Court but will retire in June 2024.

With regard to the selection of new vice-presidents of the Supreme Court, the government proceeded here, too, to merit-based selections of highly competent judicial officials, among whom Maria Lepenioti stands out, a judge with prestige, competence, extremely robust and capable.

Maria Lepenioti, in addition to the successful judicial process, was the emblematic president in the AXA trial masterfully keeping the steering wheel of the process for more than five years (that’s how long the trial lasted) while with her experience she sealed the historic decision condemning the AX as a criminal organization.