Impeachment in Europe: constitutional models and practice

This thesis presents and analyses the process of impeachment relating to the Presidents of European Union Member States. The thesis presents and analyses individual constitutional models of impeachment across Member States based on the constitutional players involved in the impeachment process, who decides on the initiation of the whole process and how, under what conditions the impeachment process can be initiated, for what offences the President can be impeached, which authorities have the power to decide on the outcome of the complaint, what penalties the President faces and whether it is possible to reverse the decision of these authorities in some way. The thesis also analyses impeachment processes that have taken place against European Presidents thus far, namely, the impeachment of Lithuanian President Paksas, Romanian President Basescu and the only attempt at a constitutional complaint to date against Czech President Václav Klaus. Three main models of impeachment can be identified in the framework of European constitutions, depending on which authority has the power to remove the President from office. Most European countries use the judicial model where the President is removed from office at the decision of a judicial authority. Judicial authorities can be of a dual nature. They can be..