The Office of the Chief Justice has denied receiving any petition from columnist Daphne Caruana Galizia to have Magistrate Consuelo Scerri-Herrera removed from two libel cases.

In a statement issued in reply to an article in MaltaToday, the Office said the two cases were only re-assigned to another Magistrate after Magistrate Scerri-Herrera's decree of abstention was brought to the attention of the Chief Justice according to law.

The Office also denied that Magistrate Scerri-Herrera had a meeting with the Chief Justice on the same morning of her abstention.

"No such meeting was held either on the morning in question or on any other day, between Magistrate Scerri-Herrera and the Chief Justice in connection with these cases; nor was the matter of her abstention ever discussed with her either verbally or in any correspondence," the Office said.