The High Court of Justice of the Basque Country and the Basque Government have called for an increase in the staff of the courts because they are "saturated"

The absence of judges and the saturation of the judicial system have been the main themes of the opening ceremony of the Basque Judicial Year held this Friday in Bilbao. In the presence of the Minister of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Courts, Félix Bolaños, the President of the Basque Country, Imanol Pradales , and the President of the High Court of Justice Justizia, have called for the strengthening of the judicial structure of the Basque courts A0\u00rllllllllllllllllllllllllRllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllEllllllllllllllLllllllLlllllllllllllllLlllllllllllllllllllllllLlllllllEEEEEE⚯

In his speech, Subijanahas called for the creation of more jobs in the courts  to deal with the "deficitof the judicial plant  in the Basque Country ", considering it to be the" weakest point of the justice system "in the Community.  The High Representative of the High Court of Justice of the Basque Country has taken an X-ray of the state of the institutional system and pointed out that the rates of accumulation of work remain at the A0.

According to the data he has provided, the courtsof instance in the capitals and in Barakaldo are the most saturated, as well as in the social sphere of Bilbao, although he has warned that "points of tension are beginning to be seen in the criminal sphere, with the average duration being extended".

In this regard, he has called for a " plafinada callfor places that take into account existing needs and those that may arise with retirement in the coming years. " 

It alsocriticizes the fact that the latest decisions taken by the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) and the Spanish Government "do not go in that direction" . It regrets that following the request for the creation of an additional judicial place  in each of the courts for violence against women, a Royal Decree has been published approving the creation of a single place for Barakaldo. It also explains that the proposal that the CGPJ adopted in July and submitted to the Ministry of Justice considers the creation of five new judicial places in the Basque Country to be "essential".

On the other hand, the President , Pradales, has stated that justice, in order to meet the expectations of an increasingly "demanding" society, must be "effective, intelligent, modern, human, universal and close". In this regard, he has stressed the need for "the necessary human resources" and recalled that this aspect "isnotdirectly within the competence of the Basque Country ".

The Minister of Justice, Félix Bolaños, has also referred to the workload of judges in statements to the media. He has confirmed that the "transformation" of justice being carried out by the State Government will respond to the current "obstacles" and that Spanish judges and magistrates will "make the workload more reasonable". 

He explains that the Courts are dealing with regulations such as the Lawon the Extension and Strengthening of the Fiscal and Judicial Career, which will allow the staff of State Judges and Prosecutors to be increased by 2500 jobs in three years. 

"In three years' time, the largest public offer of employment for judges and prosecutors in the history of democracy will be made," he said, announcing, on the one hand, an extraordinary regularization for substitute judges and, on the other, an offer of 1,500 places for judges and prosecutors in three years (2025-2027).