CSM Retroactively Grants Final Evaluation to Ex‑Judge Iolanda Apostolico

Overview

• Iolanda Apostolico, a former judge in Catania, won her seventh and final professional evaluation in a CSM plenary vote on Wednesday that passed 20 to 6 with 5 abstentions.
• The decision applies retroactively from April 11, 2023, which triggers back pay tied to the last step increase even though she left the bench in 2024.
• Lay members from the governing right opposed the move, citing a 2018 video shared by Matteo Salvini that shows her at a pro‑migrant protest and arguing it raised doubts about impartiality.
• Togati from progressive groups backed the evaluation, saying her 2023 ruling that set aside the Cutro decree in a Pozzallo case was correct in law and noting the government did not appeal it.
• In Italy, periodic CSM evaluations determine salary steps and eligibility for higher posts, and this case has become a test of how civic protest, judicial neutrality, and career advancement should be weighed.