Supreme Court meets amid allegations

The Supreme Court is scrambling to address bombshell allegations of bias and special interests, while the government says it does not want to interfere out of respect of separation of powers.

According to Kathimerini Cyprus, the full bench was set to hold a meeting Monday morning to address allegations made in a letter by attorney Nicos Clerides last week.

Clerides, who is the brother of the current attorney general, wrote on social media in December that Supreme Court judges had children or family members working for powerhouse attorneys, naming Chryssafinis & Polyviou LLC.

“Favouritism has unfortunately extended also into the Judicial Branch. Our courts are under the control of the legal firm Chryssafinis & Polyviou. There is no judge sitting on the Supreme Court who does not have a child in that law firm that promotes the interests of the banks,” Clerides wrote.

The government made clear on Sunday that it did not plan to weigh in on the issue. Government spokesperson Prodromos Prodromou said the allegations and accusations leveled against the judges will have to be taken on by all involved in the legal business, institutions and the Legal Service department.

“The President and Justice Minister are watching the public discourse. Justice, however, is an independent power and we expect that the entirety of institutions will come together to address the issue at hand,” Prodromou said.

Two years ago, the Supreme Court reported another Cypriot lawyer and outspoken critic, former ECHR judge Loukis Loukaides, who made similar allegations of corruption.

Back in 2016, Loukaides claimed that corruption was rampant in Cyprus, rendering court decisions questionable at best. He also called for better training of judges.