Chris Soler has been selected by a commission of retired judges to serve as State Advocate, succeeding Victoria Buttigieg, who last month was appointed Attorney General.

The commission, which selected Soler after a call for applications, was formed of former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi and former judges Lawrence Quintano and Antonio Mizzi.

Soler became a lawyer 20 years ago and served in the criminal court and as a university lecturer in criminal law.

More recently he served in legal services at the university and was chairman of the Refugees Appeals Board. 

Times of Malta had reported last month that no applications were received for the role following the initial call. A second call was then issued. 

A senior government official had told Times of Malta that some potential candidates feared both potential interference from the government as well as undue pressure from the opposition and so chose not to submit their names.

Justice Minister Edward Zammit Lewis congratulated Soler on his appointment.

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