The Council of State reviews all laws for their compatibility with the Luxembourg constitution, international treaties and other laws Library photo: Olivier Minaire / Maison Moderne

The Council of State reviews all laws for their compatibility with the Luxembourg constitution, international treaties and other laws Library photo: Olivier Minaire / Maison Moderne

The executive committee of the Déi Gréng party on Friday nominated Josiane Pauly as candidate for a vacant position in the Council of State, which reviews draft laws and checks whether they are compatible with the constitution, international treaties and other laws.

The council counts 21 members, at least 11 of which must have a law degree. Seats are distributed based on party representation in parliament. The crown prince is also a member. Councillor Georges Wivenes, a member of the CSV party, in early July left his position and the Greens on 17 September nominated Pauly as his successor. 

A notary, Pauly was chairwoman of the board of directors of the Société nationale de contrôle technique (SNCT), worked at the ministry of transport for 16 years--rising to the rank of senior advisor--and is a member of the National Commission for Data Protection (CNPD). She has also taught at the national academy for civil servants (INAP).

Pauly has “extensive professional experience in the fields of administrative law and mobility law,” Déi Gréng said in a press release. 

Luxembourg’s parliament must support the candidacy and members are officially appointed by the grand duke as head of state.  If confirmed, Pauly would be the Green’s third council member while the CSV would lose one mandate, down from eight. Pauly would bring the number of women on the council up to eight, making up well below half of the institution’s members.

The Council of State has faced allegations of a lack of transparency and the potential for lobbying, but its president, Christophe Schiltz, in an earlier this year said the council adopts opinions by consensus and doesn’t act along party political lines. 

“I think it’s very important to keep the party-political discussions out of the Council of State, so that it has credibility and so that the opinions have the credibility of having been analysed in a neutral, impartial way,” Schiltz said.

The council reviews all draft laws submitted to parliament, whether they are for new laws or changes to existing texts. It formulates opinions and in some cases proposes alternatives if it does not agree with aspects of a particular bill. It can also issue formal opposition if it finds the text to violate the constitution or higher laws.