More court chaos in Portugal

but of course that PT justice system is a mess, the whole country is a mess, that is not new to me.

Sorry Pedro.  Of course we join you in wishing this sorted out ASAP for obvious reasons.

Am I right in thinking that Miguel Sousa Tavares said months ago that this would happen, and was scoffed at?

bb1 wrote:Am I right in thinking that Miguel Sousa Tavares said months ago that this would happen, and was scoffed at?

If I remember correctly the problem was raised on the last day of the Amaral trial when somebody said it would affect the date for reconvening later in the year. It might even have been the judge who mentioned it.

Yes, that does ring a bell, Greenink. And I've remembered, it wasn't MST who predicted chaos when this was first mooted, it was Marinho Pinto.

Portugal's new 'judicial map' is failing due to lack of staff


Created: 02 December 2014


Three months after the launch of the new ‘judicial map’ under the control of the Ministry for Justice there are still some problems.

Software failures in the new Citius software programme and the lack of judicial officials to run the courts system are the main gripes from the secretary-general of the Trade Union Association of Portuguese Judges, Maria José Costeira, and the president of the Judicial Officers Union, Fernando Jorge.

Both officials agree that in terms of the new management model for the courts, each of the new judicial regions are working in isolation from the others despite the Citius system being designed to join up the court network and speed up the justice process.

To address the labour problem, the ASJP already has asked the Superior Council of Magistrates for help in standardising issues related to staff vacation and substituting judges.

The president of the Association of Prosecutors, Rui Cardoso, said today that the problems detected in the Citius computer system when it was installed in the country’s courts are being overcome and gradually resolved by the Ministry of Justice under Paula Teixeira da Cruz.

Another problem is the actual court buildings with planned renovations in Loures still on the drawing board and the court in Faro still operating from a series of Portakabins while the old court building is refurbished.

Fernando Jorge says that court staffing is about 1,000 below the number necessary, which according to Rui Cardoso, represents probably the most serious problem because this affects the proper functioning of the courts.

Jorge said that the Ministry of Justice has not been able to start the recruitment process for more staff as the request has been held up at the Ministry of Finance which must authorise the expenditure.

Maria Jose Costeira said that there still exist deficiencies in the Citius computer system, especially with cases that have yet to be entered into the system, in particular some bankruptcy cases that were due to heard in the commercial courts. This seems also to be the case for many debt enforcement actions, to the delight of the debtors.

With the long overdue judicial reforms, the country was divided into 23 districts, each with a central court in the district capital. Alongside this reorganisation, the Citius court and case management system was introduced but failed to function at all for six weeks thus further delaying the country’s caseload backlog.

Justice Minister Paula Teixeira da Cruz faced calls for her resignation during the Citius compuertisation crisis and certainly lost control of the reins for a time, developing the bad habit of blaming others rather than taking responsibility for the project that at the end of the day is hers and hers alone.


http://algarvedailynews.com/news/4141-portugal-s-new-judicial-map-is-failing-due-to-lack-of-staff

developing the bad habit of blaming others rather than taking responsibility

Politicians are all the same.

Well I never! 

http://algarvedailynews.com/news/4604-super-judge-to-report-on-portugal-s-justice-system



Super judge to report on Portugal's justice system


Created: 27 January 2015


A special UN rapporteur specialising in the Independence of Judges and Lawyers has started looking into Portugal's judges and the snail like pace of the justice system.

Gabriela Knaul was at the Attorney General's Office in Lisbon today starting a series of meetings with representatives of Portugal’s government, legislature and judiciary.

Knaul’s visit will end on February 3rd after she has met the ombudsman, judges and lawyers to enable her to report on the Portuguese judicial system to the Human Rights Council this June.

The work will focus on the ‘achievements and challenges in the country to ensure the independence of the judiciary, the free exercise of the legal profession, and access to justice for all,’ according to a statement from Gabriela Knaul who is in Portugal at the invitation of the Portuguese Ministry of Justice.

According to Knaul, her report will focus on key issues surrounding the administration of justice, such as ‘undue delay, equal access to justice and legal aid, particularly for the most vulnerable members of the population, such as children, immigrants, Roma and women victims of domestic violence.’

Knaul became a UN Special Rapporteur in August 2009 and formerly was a judge in Brazil specialising in criminal justice and the administration of judicial systems. She holds a Master’s Degree in Public and Private Law from São Paulo State University and an MBA in Judiciary Management from the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Rio de Janeiro.

The disastrous delay in introducing Portugal’s much heralded ‘new judicial map’ planned to start last September 1st will not shed a good light on the speed of justice section of Knaul’s report, nor will counter-intuitive cases such as that of Serena Wylde, sued by her lawyer whose performance she complained about to Portugal’s Ordem de Advogados.

Cases take years to be heard in Portugal and long delays are so common as to be the norm.

Court staff unions claim that there are too few trained personnel to administer the new computerised case management system and clearly the Justice Minister failed in her role last summer yet remains in post.

Cases are purposefully delayed until out of time, witnesses are called on the wrong days and many claimants are put off seeking legal redress as the justice system is held in such low regard by so many that it can rightly be said to reserved for the state, the rich and the influential.

Whether the June report uncoveres the shocking truth behind the veneer that currently purports to be a justice system, or simply reports on what the justice wants to be but fails, remains to be seen.

Whether the June report uncoveres the shocking truth behind the veneer that currently purports to be a justice system, or simply reports on what the justice wants to be but fails, remains to be seen.

As its Portugal, it may all be simply shoved behind the curtains yet again, unfortunately.

Portugal's record on domestic violence is absolutely appalling in a supposed civilised Western democracy:

https://jatyk2.forumotion.co.uk/t4692-terrified-woman-left-by-police-to-be-stabbed-to-death-in-setubal