On 31 March 2026, Dr Simona Drenik Bavdek, Human Rights Ombudswoman, published a call for nominations for one of her Deputy Ombudsmen. According to the first paragraph of Article 15 of the Human Rights Ombudsman Act (ZVarCP), the Human Rights Ombudsman shall have at least two and at most four deputies. The term of office of one of these deputies expires on 1 April 2026.

Nominations must be submitted within 30 days of the publication of the call, i.e. by 30 April 2026. Nominations must be sent either to the Ombudsman’s email address or by post to the institution’s headquarters in Ljubljana, with a note clearly indicating the purpose of the nomination. Submissions must include a statement of reasons and the candidate’s written consent confirming their willingness to accept the nomination. Further details are available at the link.

In accordance with the first paragraph of Article 15 of the Human Rights Ombudsman Act, a Deputy Ombudsman is appointed by the National Assembly upon the Ombudswoman’s proposal. Only a citizen of the Republic of Slovenia may be appointed as Deputy Ombudsman. The term of office of a Deputy Ombudsman is six years. Upon the expiry of the term of office, a Deputy Ombudsman may be reappointed. The National Assembly decides on the Ombudswoman’s proposal within 45 days of its submission.

Deputy Ombudsmen work in various substantive areas, covering a broad spectrum of human rights protection. These areas include equality before the law, protection of dignity and personality rights, freedom of expression, social security, labour law matters, the judiciary, and the protection of children’s rights. Each Deputy Ombudsman is responsible for a specific area, with assignments determined by the Ombudswoman based on the organisation of work and the substantive relatedness of cases.