Romania / Constitutional Court / no. 297

Constitutional referral made by D.L.C.
Deciding body type
National Court/Tribunal
Deciding body
Constitutional Court
Type
Decision
Decision date
29/05/2025
  • Romania / Constitutional Court / no. 297

    Key facts of the case:

    The appellant D.L.C. is a Romanian civil servant who was fined because she did not comply with existing integrity legislation which made it mandatory for civil servants to publish statements about their income, assets and interest as well as the income of their children and spouses.

    She did not include in her statement, information about her husband’s income, who was not a civil servant. Because of this she was fined and she challenged the fine. 

    D.L.C. claimed that she should not be penalised under a rule that requires her to disclose her husband's income, as his salary is confidential as per the employment contract concluded with his employer, and her husband did not wish to provide her with this information, as he was under no obligation to do so. She also noted that she did not have an option to anonymise his income. She argued that these provisions violate her right to family, and private life. She claimed that there may be situations within each family where the members are either not interested in the exact income earned by the other, or the spouse does not wish or is unable to disclose the income earned in the previous year. In such a situation, the person required to submit the declaration of assets is objectively unable to complete the section relating to the spouse's income, but must accept the reality of what is declared, including regarding the spouse's income, and bear the consequences under criminal law.

    She asked the Constitutional Court to analyse the constitutionality of these legal provisions making it mandatory for her to disclose the salary of her husband. She also criticised the fact that these statements are made public on the website of the employing institution and of the integrity authority.

    Key legal question raised by the court:

    The Constitutional Court was asked to determine whether existing obligations imposed on civil servants to disclose their income as well as the income of their spouse and children, are compatible with the right to private and family life and protection of personal data.

    Outcome of the case:

    The Constitutional Court found that the provisions on integrity in the exercise of public functions and dignities, making it mandatory for the complainant to disclose the income of her spouse, as well as those of her adult children who are dependent on her, are unconstitutional. 

    The Court also found that provisions which make it mandatory to publish statements on assets and interest on the website of the employer institution are unconstitutional.

  • Paragraphs referring to EU Charter

    33. In this context, the Constitutional Court notes the findings of the Court of Justice of the European Union in its judgment of August 1, 2022, delivered in Case C-184/20, to the effect that European law (more specifically Article 7(c) of Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data and Article 6( (1), first subparagraph, point (c), and paragraph 3 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation), read in the light of Articles 7, 8, and 52(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union] precludes the public disclosure of personal data relating to the spouse, partner, or cohabitant of the declarant or to persons close to or known to him or her. The decision cited was given in relation to Lithuanian legislation which required any director of an institution receiving public funds to submit declarations regarding the private interests to the national authority designated to collect such declarations and verify their content. In these declarations, the person concerned had to provide information on the personal details and activities of the spouse, concubine, or partner of a director of an institution receiving public funds, as well as on relatives or other persons known to the director.

    ...

    35. Furthermore, in the present case, the Constitutional Court considers, taking into account the European approach strongly focused on the need to protect personal data, that the publication of declarations of assets on the website of the institution where the declarant works and on that of the National Integrity Agency, in accordance with Article 12(6) of Law no. 176/2010, contravenes the fundamental right to privacy regulated by Article 26 of the Constitution and recognised internationally by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 12) and in the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (Article 8) and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (Article 7).

    ...

    38. At the same time, confidentiality and data protection are rights enshrined in the European Union treaties and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Thus, the Charter establishes an explicit right to the protection of personal data (Article 8), and Article 16 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) obliges the EU to establish data protection rules for the processing of personal data. In this regard, in April 2016, a comprehensive legal framework, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), was adopted at European Union level, fully applicable in all Member States of the European Union since 2018.

  • Paragraphs referring to EU Charter (original language)

    33. În aceste coordonate, Curtea Constituțională reține cele statuate de Curtea de Justiție a Uniunii Europene în Hotărârea din 1 august 2022, pronunțată în cauza C-184/20, în sensul că dreptul european [mai exact articolul 7 litera (c) din Directiva 95/46/CE a Parlamentului European și a Consiliului din 24 octombrie 1995 privind protecția persoanelor fizice în ceea ce privește prelucrarea datelor cu caracter personal și libera circulație a acestor date și articolul 6 alineatul (1) primul paragraf litera (c) și alineatul (3) din Regulamentul (UE) 2016/679 privind protecția persoanelor fizice în ceea ce privește prelucrarea datelor cu caracter personal și privind libera circulație a acestor date și de abrogare a Directivei 95/46/CE (Regulamentul general privind protecția datelor), citite în lumina art. 7, 8 și art. 52 alineatul (1) din Carta drepturilor fundamentale a Uniunii Europene] se opune divulgării publice a datelor nominale referitoare la soțul, partenerul sau concubinul declarantului ori la persoanele apropiate sau cunoscute de acesta. Hotărârea citată a fost dată în legătură cu legislația lituaniană care impunea în sarcina oricărui director al unei instituții care primește fonduri publice obligația de a depune declarații de interese private la autoritatea națională desemnată cu colectarea acestor declarații și cu verificarea conținutului lor. În cuprinsul acestor declarații, persoana vizată trebuia să furnizeze informații privind datele nominale și activitățile soțului, concubinului sau partenerului unui director al unei instituții care primește fonduri publice, precum și privind rudele sau alte persoane cunoscute de către director.

    ...

    35. De asemenea, în cauza de față, Curtea Constituțională apreciază, ținând cont de concepția europeană orientată pregnant pe necesitatea protecției datelor cu caracter personal, că publicarea pe site-ul instituției în cadrul căreia își desfășoară activitatea declarantul și pe cel al Agenției Naționale de Integritate a declarațiilor de avere, conform art. 12 alin. (6) din Legea nr. 176/2010, contravine dreptului fundamental la viață privată reglementat de art. 26 din Constituție și recunoscut la nivel internațional prin Declarația Universală a Drepturilor Omului (articolul 12) și în Convenția pentru apărarea a drepturilor omului și a libertăților fundamentale(articolul 8) și în Carta drepturilor fundamentale a Uniunii Europene (articolul 7).

    ...

    38. Totodată, confidențialitatea și protecția datelor sunt drepturi consacrate în tratatele Uniunii Europene și în Carta drepturilor fundamentale a Uniunii Europene. Astfel, Carta instituie un drept explicit la protecția datelor cu caracter personal (articolul 8), iar articolul 16 din Tratatul privind funcționarea Uniunii Europene (TFUE) obligă UE să stabilească norme de protecție a datelor pentru prelucrarea datelor cu caracter personal. În acest sens, în aprilie 2016, la nivelul Uniunii Europene a fost adoptat un cadru legal exhaustiv, Regulamentul general privind protecția datelor (RGPD), aplicabil pe deplin în toate statele membre ale Uniunii Europene începând cu anul 2018.