site.btaSupreme Court Will Proceed with Gurov's Incompatibility Appeal Case
By a final ruling issued on Thursday, Bulgaria's Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) left without consideration two motions entered by the Governing Council of the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) in a case concerning Bulgaria's caretaker Prime Minister Andrey Gurov. A duplicate copy of the ruling will be sent to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), the Bulgarian court said.
The motions that were dismissed as unfounded were submitted by the BNB in its capacity as respondent on February 24, 2026, arguing that the legal dispute had lost purpose after Gurov resigned as BNB deputy governor in the wake of his appointment as caretaker Prime Minister.
First Motion
The first motion was that the SAC withdraw its request for a preliminary ruling by the CJEU.
On September 19, 2024, the SAC referred eight questions to the CJEU to interpret provisions of the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
The request was addressed after the SAC stayed its proceedings on an appeal by Gurov, who challenged a July 16, 2024 BNB Governing Council decision to suspend him as central bank deputy governor in charge of the Issue Department because he did not satisfy the conditions required for the performance of these duties and had been found guilty of serious misconduct. The SAC dismissed the appellant's request to freeze the enforcement of the central bank management's decision but reserved judgment, pending an answer from the EU Court of Justice.
The supreme judges determined that the reference for a preliminary ruling should subsist because the EU law rules specified in the request need to be interpreted for a correct resolution of the dispute.
For his part, Gurov invoked an opinion of the European Central Bank, according to which the CJEU needs to be approached for a preliminary opinion on the removal of a BNB deputy governor considering the gravity of the alleged violation.
Second Motion
The second motion was that the SAC terminate its proceedings in Gurov's appeal case.
The supreme judges argued that, notwithstanding the termination of his powers as BNB deputy governor on February 19, 2026 (when he resigned as he was appointed caretaker prime minister by President Iliana Iotova), the appellant has not forfeited his standing to challenge the suspension decision because if this administrative act is revoked he would be entitled to seek compensation for material and non-material damage. Gurov asserted that a revocation of the decision at issue would also help him clear his name. He argued that the BNB Governing Board decision was based on an ineffective administrative act of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
The reference is to a June 24, 2024 finding of the ACC, according to which Gurov was incompatible with his position at the central bank because, when he took office, he still held shares in a business company and, without authorization from the BNB management, was member of the governing bodies of two non-profit legal entities. On July 1, 2024, Gurov brought an action against the ACC before the Sofia City Administrative Court, which held that its finding was null and void. That judgment, however, was appealed before the SAC and remains unenforced.
Advocate General's Opinion Sparks Controversy
On March 26, 2026, CJEU Advocate General Nicholas Emiliou issued an opinion in the case according to which EU law allows a deputy governor of a national central bank to hold shares in a commercial company, provided that national legislation includes mechanisms to assess whether such participation creates a conflict of interest that could affect the bank's independence or public trust.
Emiliou's opinion has received poles-apart reactions in Bulgaria. Movement for Rights and Freedoms leader Delyan Peevski said on Facebook that the CJEU had confirmed the lawfulness of the BNB decision on Gurov's removal. Former Constitutional Court member Plamen Kirov saw the opinion as upholding the Governing Council's decision because it was "completely consistent" with both domestic legislation and EU law. Yonko Grozev, a former judge at the European Court of Human Rights, commented that the Advocate General implied that Gurov's suspension from his BNB office had been unlawful. Caretaker Justice Minister Andrey Yankulov dismissed the allegations that the CJEU had "approved" Gurov's removal from the central bank as "manipulation and propaganda" and "entirely out of touch with reality". Gurov's lawyer Hristo Hristev argued that Emiliou did not conclude that Gurov was lawfully suspended.
An Advocate General's opinion is not binding on the European Court, which is expected to rule conclusively on the case this coming summer or autumn. After that, the SAC will reopen Gurov's appeal case.
/NZ/
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