Jana Dubovcová

Jana Dubovcová, née Jana Verčíková,^[2] was born on 22 June 1952 in Žilina.^[3] She studied law at the Comenius University, graduating in 1977.^[2]

During her tenure as a judge she earned recognition from the Transparency International a champion of transparency, who was often critical of her fellow judges. Because of this, she faced accusations of politicizing the courts.^[4]

In 2010 Slovak parliamentary election, she gained an MP seat on the list of Slovak Democratic and Christian Union – Democratic Party. She did not serve the entire term as on 28 March 2012 she was elected ombudsman.^[5]

As an ombudsman, Dubovcová became known for defending the rights of the Romani residents of a settlement Budulovská nearby the town of Moldava nad Bodvou, who were brutalized by the police.^[6][7] She also criticized the decrease of social transfers for the poor.^[8] For her activities as an ombudsman, she received the Human Rights Defender prize from the US embassy.^[9]

In the 2020 Slovak parliamentary election Dubovcová ran on the joint list of Progressive Slovakia and SPOLU, which narrowly failed to pass the parliament representation threshold.^[10]

On 15 May 2023, the president Zuzana Čaputová installed Dubovcová as the Minister of Justice in her technocratic government.^[11]