The Importance of Professional Legal Ethics for the Independence of the Judiciary

The article examines one of the sources of "soft law" - the codes of ethics adopted by the Supreme Judicial Council and their significance for the legal system of the Republic of Bulgaria. The scientific aim of the study is to examine the independence of the judiciary in the light of professional legal ethics. In pursuit of the stated objective, the author has implemented two main research tasks: first, to analyze the meaning and possible manifestations of the principle of independence of the judiciary; and second, to examine the interrelation between law and morality in the light of professional ethics of persons working in the judiciary. The present work will, from a theoretical perspective, enrich the doctrine with an analysis of the legal nature of codes of professional ethics and, from a practical perspective, assist law enforcement authorities. The research was developed in the framework of the author's participation in the national scientific project NPI №57 of 2022 on the topic "Legal Relations and Status of Persons in the Judiciary in the Conditions of Digitalization".