Dominican Republic to evaluate seven Supreme Court judges

The National Council of the Magistracy (CNM) has scheduled performance evaluations for seven judges of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) to take place on Tuesday, August 25, starting at 9:00 a.m. The judges to be interviewed include Justiniano Montero Montero, Francisco Jerez Mena, Vanessa Acosta Peralta, Samuel Arias Arzeno, Alejandro Bello Ferreras, Fran Soto Sánchez, and Rafael Vásquez Goico.

These evaluations are part of a broader process to determine which magistrates will be confirmed for a second seven-year term and which will be replaced. Out of the eleven judges whose constitutional terms conclude this year, four—including SCJ President Luis Henry Molina—have already indicated they will not seek ratification, and three have completed the maximum two terms allowed by the Constitution.

The evaluation process, governed by Regulation 2-25, will assess technical, ethical, and personal criteria such as productivity, decision quality, integrity, and independence. The interviews will be public and broadcast live. Following this phase, the CNM will accept new nominations for the eleven available seats. Civil society organizations, such as the Institutionalidad y Justicia Foundation (Finjus), have called for the selection of career judges with recognized professional trajectories and moral solvency.