President Miloš Zeman appointed a judge of the Constitutional Court., February 15, 2023, Prague Castle. Jan Svatoň.
Prague – The former dean of the Brno Faculty of Law, Jan Svatoň, became the new constitutional judge. President Miloš Zeman appointed him to the position. Until now, Svatoň worked at the Department of Constitutional Law at Masaryk University in Brno, where he was also vice-rector. The new judge Veronika Vlčková, who will judge at the District Court in Trutnov, also took her oath today.
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Seventy-year-old Svatoň will replace Kateřina Šimáčková at the Constitutional Court, who already moved to the European Court of Human Rights the year before. The appointment was approved by the Senate at the end of January on Zeman's proposal, his nomination was unanimously recommended by the Senate's constitutional-legal and human rights committees. The President of the Constitutional Court, Pavel Rychetský, also previously described Svatoně, who was an assistant to three constitutional judges, as a very high-quality candidate. the court will not, as is sometimes said, be some kind of third chamber of the Parliament. And that its representatives will be real judges, not political activists,” Zeman said when appointing Svatona.
Zeman originally proposed lawyer Petr Poledník to replace Šimáčková, but he did not get the necessary support in the Senate last year. Svatoň won 57 of the 68 senatorial votes cast in the Senate's secret election.
In his candidacy speech, Svatoň told the senators that he is aware of the real importance of the Constitutional Court, but also of its responsibility to society and the population. He would like to take care not only of constitutionality control, but also of consistent respect for the rights and freedoms of individuals and groups, non-discrimination and social solidarity. He rejected a shorthand and formalistic approach to the court's decisions.
Svatoň identified the verdict as one of the most important decisions of the Constitutional Court, according to which the constitution is not based on value neutrality, but expresses the basic values of a democratic state, and that law and justice are not the subject free disposition of the legislator.
Svatoň was the dean of the Faculty of Law of Masaryk University from 2001 to 2007. Later, he also held the position of vice-rector for social affairs and further education. He is an expert in constitutional law and political science. In the past, he was an assistant to constitutional judges Jiří Malenovský and Vojen Güttler, now he works in the same position with judge Vladimír Sládeček. Svatoň therefore described the relationship to the constitutional judiciary as a 'fatal attraction'. He was also an associate member of the disciplinary panel of the Supreme Administrative Court.
Judge Vlčková, who was appointed by Zeman together with other judges at the beginning of December, took her oath today at Prague Castle. However, Vlčková could not participate in the event due to illness.
