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An expert group will be established in Armenia in February 2020 to draft constitutional amendments, Armenia’s Justice Minister Rustam Badasyan told reporters on Friday, ahead of the conference “The Strategy of Legal and Judicial Reform of Armenia for 2019-2023 in the Light of Increasing Public Trust.”

Asked whether the reforms are expected to resolve the crisis of the Constitutional Court, the minister said that “if the expert group sees the need for this and offers appropriate solutions, then yes, it is possible.” 

The justice minister also reflected on the possible merging of the Constitutional Court and the Court of Cassation into a supreme court, noting: “It is up to the expert group to evaluate it. There is very bad practice when the authorities dictate what to change and why. We will let the expert group to decide for itself whether it sees the prerequisites for such a need,” he said.

Commenting on the process launched by the parliamentary majority to suspend the powers of Constitutional Court Chairman Hrayr Tovmasyan, the justice minister said that the National Assembly, making use of the powers vested in it by the Constitution, has submitted an appropriate appeal to the highest court. 

“I have read the arguments in the document of the National Assembly as to what they see as a substantive violation. In my opinion, there are some issues that were recorded by the parliament and the respective document was submitted. The National Assembly has, in fact, made a reasonable assumption with certain justifications that a substantial disciplinary violation has been committed,” he said.

Asked whether the grounds outlined in the document are convincing, the minster replied: “I consider the appeal grounded.”