Pope Francis makes new appointments to the Vatican Court of Cassation

2023-06-02 13:35:00

June 2, 2023 / 6:35 a.m.

The Holy See Press Office has published the recent appointments of Pope Francis to the Court of Cassation of Vatican City State, effective as of January 1, 2024.

Among these appointments is that of the new president, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, and 3 new Cardinal judges.

The Court of Cassation of the Vatican City State is the court of last instance of the Vatican that exercises justice in the name of the Pontiff.

In the statement, released this Friday, June 2, it is reported that Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, will be the new president of the Court of Cassation of Vatican City State.

Likewise, the new judges of this Court will be the Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna (Italy) and president of the Italian Episcopal Conference; he Cardinal Augusto Paolo Lojudice, Archbishop of Siena-Colle di Val d’Elsa-Montalcino (Italy); and the Cardinal Mauro GambettiVicar General of Pope Francis for Vatican City.

For his part, Pope Francis has appointed as Applied Judges Antonella Marandola, professor of Criminal Procedure Law at the University of Sannio (Italy), and Chiara Minelli, professor of Canon Law at the University of Brescia (Italy).

On the other hand, the deputy president of the Vatican City State Court will be -also from January 1, 2024- Fr. Venerando Marano, until now a judge of said Court. Its president is Giuseppe Pignatone.

These appointments of Pope Francis in the Vatican Court of Cassation respond to the motu proprio published on April 12, with which he modified for the third time the judicial system of the Vatican City State and the provisions of the law published in March 2020.

The Vatican Court of Cassation previously consisted of the prefect of the Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signature and two other Cardinal members of the same Supreme Court, appointed by the president for a term of three years, and by two or more applied judges, appointed for a three-year term.

Behind the motu proprio April, the Court of Cassation is made up of four Cardinals, all appointed by the Pope for a five-year term.

In addition, it establishes that the same Pope “appoints the president from among them, as well as two or more applied judges, appointed for a term of three years.”

Almudena Martínez-Bordiú is a Spanish journalist, correspondent for ACI Prensa in Rome and the Vatican, with four years of experience in religious information.