Promotion to the category of Magistrate Judge is regulated under Article 311 of the Organic Law on the Judiciary, which states that for every four Magistrate Judge vacancies that arise, one will be filled through selection tests in the area of civil and criminal law, and tests for specialisation in contentious-administrative, labour and commercial law

Selection tests for promotion from the category of judge to magistrate judge within the civil and criminal court systems will take place at the Judicial School and will assess the candidates’ ability and legal training, as well as their knowledge of the various branches of law. They may consist of studies, courses, drafting of reports or decisions and their defence before the Board, presentations and responses to comments by the Board in other similar exercises.

The body responsible for the selection process is the General Council of the Judiciary.

The Grading Board that will assess the tests for this category will comprise:

• The President of the Supreme Court, or a Magistrate Judge of the Supreme Court or High Court of Justice delegated by him or her, who will chair the Board,
• two magistrate judges,
• one prosecutor,
• two senior university professors of civil law; tenured university professors may be appointed on an exceptional basis,
• a State attorney,
• a lawyer with more than ten years’ professional practice,
• a first-category Judicial Administration Clerk,
• a lawyer of the General Council of the Judiciary who holds a law degree, to act as Secretary

The selection process will involve completion of theoretical and practical exercises, followed by a course at the Judicial School. The theoretical exercises will be related to knowledge of civil law, commercial law and civil procedural law subjects. Activities of the Judicial School course that aspiring candidates who have completed the exercise will be required to take include attending single-judge and collegial courts that have sole jurisdiction to hear and rule on civil law cases.