Judge Lawrence Mintoff will not resign, people close to him say

Judge Lawrence Mintoff is not resigning despite breaching the judiciary’s code of ethics when he sent ministers a damning letter alleging wrongdoing by the prime minister.

Mintoff is adamant to stay on, sources close to the judge told MaltaToday even as he faces an investigation by the judiciary’s standards commissioner.

“Judge Mintoff will not step down and will fight all the way,” the sources said. “Judge Mintoff knows he has torpedoed his chance of ever becoming chief justice and has practically put his career on the line but he is determined to soldier on.”

Indeed, on Wednesday, Mintoff was in court presiding over several cases that are currently pending before him.

Mintoff’s decision to write to ministers was unprecedented and stunned the political establishment.

The judge was reported to the Commissioner for Judicial Standards Toni Abela by Chief Justice Mark Chetcuti.

The judiciary’s code of ethics bars members of the judiciary from communicating in private with members of the executive “on any matter connected with their duties or functions except through or after express consultation” with the chief justice. There are other provisos within the code of ethics that Mintoff could potentially have fallen foul of, given the public controversy that erupted after the contents of his letter were revealed.

Mintoff sent ministers a letter under oath informing them of the contents of a meeting he had with Prime Minister Robert Abela at Castille on the appointment of chief justice.

The judge claimed the prime minister told him that he will not be choosing any of the four names proposed by the Opposition for chief justice because it would anger party diehards and raise Alex Borg’s stature. Mintoff was one of the judges on the Opposition's list.

The judge also claimed that Abela wanted to put off appointing a new chief justice until after the general election because the political climate lacked serenity.

But more damning were Mintoff’s allegations over Abela’s behaviour as a lawyer in the Paqpaqli għall-Istrina case from eight years ago.

Mintoff claimed that Abela, who was representing one of the parties in the damages suit filed by several victims of the charity event supercar crash, applied pressure on a court employee and even threatened her that she would lose her job. Although the case had been withdrawn since an out of court settlement was reached, Mintoff set taxation on court expenses at the minimum level. According to Mintoff, Abela was contesting this decision and had applied undue pressure on an employee in the judge’s office. At the time, Abela was a member of parliament and worked as a lawyer.

Mintoff refused Abela’s pressure but did not report the matter to the relevant authorities at the time. When Abela became prime minister in 2020, the judge confronted Abela about the case when they met during a courtesy visit at the law courts and the prime minister dismissed the issue, insisting it was all “water under the bridge”.

Mintoff claimed his decision not to give in to Abela's demands on the Paqpaqli incident was the "real reason" the prime minister did not want to nominate him as chief justice.

READ ALSO | PM denies claims of judicial interference: ‘I have full respect for Lawrence Mintoff and judiciary’

Disciplinary measures

The Constitution mandates that the investigation by the standards commissioner be carried out behind closed doors. If he finds there is enough prima facie evidence for disciplinary procedures to be initiated against Mintoff, he will have to communicate the findings in writing to the chief justice and the justice minister.

The Constitution states that the standards commissioner should not determine guilt and Mintoff will be given the chance to make his case.

It is at the discretion of the chief justice and the justice minister whether to follow up on the commissioner’s written report.

However, any disciplinary measures will have to be taken by a subcommittee of the Commission for the Administration of Justice. The commission is a constitutional body chaired by President Miriam Spiteri Debono.

The subcommittee will be made up of three judges elected by their peers. All proceedings will be carried out behind closed doors.

Depending on the gravity of the case at hand, the committee can mete out punishment that ranges from a simple warning to a fine; from suspension from duty to the most extreme measure of removal. If the proven bad conduct warrants removal from office, the Commission for the Administration of Justice advises the President of the Republic to de-robe the judge.

READ ALSO | Alex Borg urges PM to answer Mintoff’s ‘damning’ claims over chief justice appointment

Repubblika seeks separate investigation

Meanwhile, rule of law NGO Repubblika filed a formal complaint with the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life to investigate what it described as the “serious allegations” made under oath by Judge Lawrence Mintoff regarding Prime Minister Robert Abela.

This will be a separate investigation from the one being conducted by the standards commissioner for the judiciary.

Repubblika asked the Standards Commissioner to examine several claims raised by the judge, including alleged pressure on a court employee, the use of parliamentary questions in a context of personal financial interest, private communications with a sitting judge concerning judicial appointments, and political considerations linked to the appointment of the chief justice.

READ ALSO | Prime minister urges standards czar to investigate time-barred allegations against him