Former Justice Minister Nominated As Head Of Armenia's Top Court

The Speaker of the Armenian National Assembly Ara Babloyan has nominated former justice minister Hrayr Tovmasyan as chairman of the country's Constitutional Court, said a statement issued by the Armenian parliament on Tuesday.

YEREVAN , (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Mar, 2018 ) :The Speaker of the Armenian National Assembly Ara Babloyan has nominated former justice minister Hrayr Tovmasyan as chairman of the country's Constitutional Court, said a statement issued by the Armenian parliament on Tuesday.

Hrayr Tovmasyan, 47, who served as Armenia's Minister of Justice from 2010 to 2013, is widely viewed as the chief architect of recent constitutional amendments that have paved the way for Armenia to turn into a parliamentary republic.

The transition from the semi-presidential system of governance will be complete on April 9 when President-Elect Armen Sarkissian will assume the office of the president.

If Tovamsyan is elected before April 9, he will take the office according to the Constitution amended in 2005, which means he will be the chairman of the Constitutional Court until he becomes 65 years old.

Otherwise, he will be elected for a 6-year period according to the new Constitution adopted in 2015. Tovmasyan was an ardent supporter of the ruling Republican Party, the membership in which he had to recently give up in order to sit on the bench of the Constitutional Court of Armenia.