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Malaga's court backlog crisis is extending to criminal proceedings which, due to their nature, are supposed to be dealt with via a 'fast-track' trial although despite the name they aren't that rapid. Despite the law stating speedy trials must be held within 15 days, in some criminal courts in Malaga these are already being scheduled for the middle of 2026, judicial sources told SUR. In others, although the delay is less, the wait is not less than eight or ten months.
This delay, as lawyers, civil servants and magistrates pointed out to SUR, a few years ago could be around two or three months. They said that, practically never has the deadline been reached in the 15 days following the presentation of the accusatory and defence pleadings, but in no case has the backlog reached current levels.
The constant increase in the number of cases filed in Malaga province, which each year exceeds the load that the judicial system can take on, has led to the current situation. Dean of Malaga's lawyers, Flor Carrasco pointed out that the collapse of the justice system and the delay in cases leaves all parties involved in a proceeding in a complicated position. "Sometimes we don't even know what to say to our clients," she told this newspaper.
The cases that follow the speedy trial procedure are those for which prison sentences of less than five years are requested, in which the investigation is presumed to be simple or in which the crime committed shows an especially contemptuous disregard for the law. These involve many types of crime such as theft, robbery, aggravated theft and also those involving gender violence.
There are also courts for violence against women with cases - which will be tried by criminal courts - which, despite being processed by this shortened procedure, are still being scheduled for more than a year ahead, in the first half of 2026. This wait leaves victims in a very vulnerable state, in which they are "tremendously re-victimised", according to a magistrate in Malaga.
Among other reasons, because, despite victims' attempts to move on with their lives, the delay in the proceedings does not allow them to put the history of abuse behind them, as they will have to relive it once the trial has arrived. In these cases, it is usual for them to have precautionary measures for their protection, such as restraining orders against alleged abusers. But during this time, magistrates pointed out, "many things can happen", such as an increase in danger or, on the contrary, when the danger is reduced, they decide to withdraw the complaint, leaving the alleged perpetrator unpunished.
According to sources, the heads of the criminal courts in Malaga usually have two days a week set aside to be used exclusively for holding speedy trials. "The problem we have is the lack of resources; this measure is still not enough because the queue continues to grow, but we also have to dedicate ourselves to other procedures, such as the passing of sentences," these sources said.
They pointed out that it is also common for these trials to be suspended on the day of the hearing due to the non-appearance of some of the parties, where magistrates then have to look for a new date.
The situation comes amid a collapse of both of the judicial bodies of Malaga and of the High Court of Justice of Andalucía (TSJA). In the case of civil courts - which hear cases related to claims for payment, evictions or abusive clauses, among others - hearings also have a waiting period of around two years before they are scheduled. Ordinary proceedings, according to legal sources, can easily take up to three years. "I've been in civil law for almost 30 years and I've never seen a backlog like this," a civil servant, who preferred to remain anonymous, told this newspaper.
These delays also affect several of the social courts, which has even led some lawyers to complain to the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) and the Malaga Bar association. As lawyer Santiago Orosa pointed out, these bodies deal with matters such as dismissals or termination of contracts, which are of an "urgent and preferential nature".
However, he is finding himself with proceedings that are being marked for three years. "Until two or three years ago, dismissals in most courts were between three and four months - waiting time - and in some it could be as long as nine months or a year," he said. Nowadays, he pointed out, most cases are being filed 13 to 16 months late.
The argument made by the magistrates, civil servants and lawyers points to the same problem: there is a lack of courts and a shortage of posts. This was also pointed out by the former head judge, José María Páez, when he presented the latest report on the activity of the Malaga courts, corresponding to the year 2023. He described the situation as "alarming".
The solution, according to this last report, was to create new judgeships, which is why the Dean had requested between 36 and 40 for Malaga. The High Court of Justice of Andalucía requested 19 more judges for Malaga.
To this proposal, the Dean's court added a further four posts. The remedy, therefore, unlike what was demanded years ago, no longer involves the creation of new courts since, given the volume of cases in Malaga, they end up equally saturated.
According to this latest report, the city's courts receive practically double the number of cases considered recommendable by the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ), as trade unions such as SPJ-USO have also criticised. The same happens in the criminal courts, which also far exceed the number of cases they receive each year in relation to the assumable workload. In these bodies, 3,736 speedy trials were scheduled, while 2,334 were actually held.
This is pointed out in the latest statistics on the activity of the judicial bodies, published by the General Council of the Judiciary, showing data from Malaga relating to the third quarter of 2024. According to these statistics, since the start of 2024 up to 30 September, 75,457 cases have been filed in the Malaga courts. In this same period, 66,271 cases have been resolved. At the end of last year, 180,459 cases remained unresolved.
The civil and criminal jurisdictions are the ones that suffer most. According to this report, in addition to the 96,424 civil proceedings that the different courts had pending at the start of the third quarter, a further 29,122 were filed in that period. At the end of the third quarter, although 23,148 cases could be resolved, 101,571 remained pending.
The courts with criminal matters started with almost half of the cases to be resolved, with 46,699, although 41,506 cases were admitted in these three months. The balance, at the end of the period, was 39,643 cases resolved and 48,125 unresolved.
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