The president of the Superior Court of Justice of Cantabria (TSJC), José Luis López del Moral, believes that the proximity of the general elections complicates the resolution of the civil servants’ strike, which is accentuating a “disastrous” year for the Spanish Justice.
In an interview with EFE, López del Moral expressed his “absolute concern” about the situation of Justice due to the succession of labor conflicts, which, as reported by the TSJC on Monday, has caused a 10.9% reduction in cases resolved in Cantabria only from January to March.
For the president of the TSCJ, the civil servants’ strike has a “very difficult” solution, because, although he qualifies, he understands that the civil servants maintain their claims to the Ministry of Justice, “it is not ethical to compromise” with a salary agreement the new team that leaves after 23-J.
“It is very difficult to get positions closer and that worries me,” laments the judge, who believes that “the margin for action is less” with the proximity of the elections and “this exacerbates the conflict.”
But he insists that the Ministry must “receive them and dialogue with them”, despite the limitations. “It’s the key to unlocking the conflict,” he says.
In Cantabria, the civil servants’ strike is having a “general impact” and although the TSJC does not yet have exact data, it has been noted, says López del Moral, a reduction in electronic notifications of up to 40%, which shows that the procedures “are slowing down” or directly “paralyzed”.
It is having a greater incidence in procedures with more formalities, such as the Courts of First Instance, although not so much in the Social Courts, the most affected by the pandemic and the lawyers’ strike.
“The key to the system”
In the opinion of López del Moral, Justice officials are “the key to the system” because they are the ones who carry out all the work to promote the processing in the courts. “Without these teams, the Justice machinery cannot function,” he points out.
And although he sees the demands of the collective as “absolutely reasonable”, he believes that the manifestations of “class” difference within the Justice that the officials point out “does not respond to reality”.
“There are autonomous communities in which, in the salary bracket that corresponds to them, they have established salary increases for civil servants that are higher than those that the Ministry of Justice has established for judges and prosecutors. “That class struggle is not exact,” he values.
“Dire” situation
López del Moral emphasizes that the current situation of Justice “is disastrous and unfair to the citizen”, that “it has no responsibility for this and is suffering the consequences” due to the succession of strikes and the pandemic.
According to the statistics published this Monday by the TSJC, when relating the total number of cases to be resolved -those that were already in court at the beginning of the quarter and the new ones that entered the period- with those that are resolved, the rate of congestion in Cantabria stands at 2.99, compared to a national average of 3.21.
The Courts of Cantabria entered a total of 16,959 new matters during the first quarter of this year, which represents a decrease of 15.5 percent compared to the same period in 2022.
In addition, the estimated average duration of first instance proceedings in Cantabria is 6.2 months, compared to a national average of 6.4 months; and in the second instance it stands at 7.4 months, above the average for the country as a whole, of 7.1 months.
Although the judicial bodies in the region have had a resolution rate of 1.06 this year, the highest in the country ahead of Madrid (1.04) and Catalonia (1.03)
The reform, “in the pipeline”
In addition, López del Moral has regretted that the electoral advance has left “once again in the dark” the organizational reform of the Spanish Courts, a change that he sees as “essential and absolutely necessary.”
“We had great hope that this would start to work,” says López del Moral, who admits “some frustration” with the paralysis of the reforms to improve efficiency in the Spanish courts due to the dissolution of the Cortes and the elections of 23- J.
In this sense, although he believes that “there is a consensus” with “qualifications” among the main parties (PSOE-PP) to promote these changes, he stresses the need to “retake” them with the new Government.
The reform to improve efficiency in the courts designed by the department directed by Pilar Llop is “very related” to improving the conditions of Spanish judges, says the president of the TSJC, who recalls that the judicial career has been demanding these changes for years .