The Constitutional Court's decision-making is paralyzed if a judge is removed.

The eventual dismissal of any of the current judges of the Constitutional Court would paralyze the decision-making of this institution. According to the Law on the Constitutional Court, a quorum is reached only when at least seven of the nine judges who make up this court are present. Lawyers say that only the eventual resignation of judge Radomir Laban, whom President Vjosa Osmani said poses a threat to national security, would block the Constitutional Court. Meanwhile, they see his dismissal at this stage as unlikely.

The Constitutional Court risks being left without a quorum in the event of the resignation or dismissal of any of the judges. 

Currently, the Constitutional Court has seven active judges and the eventual removal of any of them would prevent a quorum from forming in decision-making. 

And one of the judges of this institution caused the president to withdraw the request regarding the constitution of the Assembly, on the grounds that Radomir Laban poses a threat to national security. 

Lawyer Ardian Bajraktari says that the Constitutional Court could only be blocked if Laban resigns, as impeachment is difficult to achieve at this stage. 

"Since there are currently only seven judges with a full mandate, the moment any of their members resigns or is dismissed in any form, whoever they are, blocks decision-making, due to the fact that, as is known, according to Article 19 of the Law on the Constitutional Court, for the decisions of this court to be valid, there must be at least seven judges, while decisions are made by majority vote. This means that any of the current judges who leaves their position, in any form, consequently blocks the work of this court", said Bajraktari. "In reference to this, regarding the case of Judge Llaban, the only one who can currently block the work of this court is if he eventually resigns".

The issue of dismissal is regulated by the Constitution, namely Article 118, according to which a judge of the Constitutional Court may be dismissed only if there is a serious breach of duties or if he is convicted by a final decision for a serious criminal offense.

Vullnet Bugaqku, a researcher at KDI, has also mentioned the risk of blocking the Constitutional Court, raising doubts about the president's motives in withdrawing the request.  

"Such a removal, at this stage, would lead to a blockage of the functioning and normal exercise of the work of the Constitutional Court. Currently, this court has seven active judges and any eventual removal of Judge Laban would make decision-making on all remaining cases impossible," he stressed. 

This, Bugaqku added, is because, according to the Constitution and the Law on the Constitutional Court, a quorum is only achieved when at least seven of the nine judges who make up this court are present. 

"In this circumstance, the question arises: why exactly now did the President decide to denigrate his integrity? Is the intention to create a blockade in the Constitutional Court as well, with the aim of preventing the Court from making a decision on the constitution of the Assembly, as well as any constitutional review of the actions of the incumbent Government and the President herself?" he stressed. 

As of the end of 2024, the Constitutional Court was left without two judges, after the mandates of Gresa Caka-Nimani (chairwoman) and judge Selvete Gërxhaliu-Krasniqi expired. The election of new members is carried out by the Assembly, which has not yet been constituted after the February 9 elections. 

The British Embassy in Kosovo, on Thursday, called for the independence and decisions of the Constitutional Court to be respected.

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"The Constitutional Court of Kosovo has well-defined procedures for its deliberations and decisions. The Court's ability to function independently is vital to Kosovo's democracy. This must be respected and promoted by all parties and the Court's decisions respected and implemented," it said in a response published by this embassy.

Regarding Laban's case, the Constitutional Court declared a day earlier that he exercises the function of judge "after having undergone all constitutional and legal procedures, upon his proposal by the Assembly of Kosovo and decree by the president." 

Although a party may withdraw the request from further consideration in the Constitutional Court, the Rules of Procedure give the Court the right to issue a decision on the merits of the case raised. 

After the Constitutional Court appointed Laban as the rapporteur judge, Osmani on Tuesday withdrew the request addressed two weeks ago to define the legal consequences that arise after the failure of the deputies to constitute the Assembly within 30 days. Osmani announced that Laban was considered a dangerous person for national security and constitutional order, according to reports from security institutions in 2018, 2021 and 2024. 

Despite the withdrawal of the request, according to lawyer Bajraktari, it is the duty and responsibility of the Constitutional Court to assess whether there is still material to proceed further. 

"I have said that at the beginning, when this request was submitted, in my opinion there was a discrepancy, a discrepancy between what is actually considered a conflict of competence, and my belief is that this specific case was not such an issue. However, attacks and labeling in such a form, addressed to any judge, are of course unacceptable, they greatly reduce the public's trust in this very important institution. Therefore, whenever there are doubts, they should be addressed to the relevant bodies, and in no way should we have such forms of communication through public opinion", Bajraktari emphasized. 

The Constitutional Court's deadline for the constitution of the Assembly expired on July 26. After that, a temporary court injunction was imposed that prevents MPs from taking any action for two weeks, until August 8.

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During this period, another clarification was expected from the Constitutional Court. However, with one day left before the deadline, this clarification has not been provided.

Currently, the Constitutional Court is also handling the requests of the Democratic Party of Kosovo and the Democratic League of Kosovo regarding the issue of the constitution of the Assembly.