Portuguese courts

**Max** Thu Oct 26, 2017 3:42 am

https://algarvedailynews.com/news/12828-portuguese-courts-are-the-most-clogged-in-europe

Portuguese courts are the most clogged up in Europe

Created: 25 October 2017

It will be no surprise for those who are sat around waiting for their cases to be heard in court, that Portugal has the highest rate of congestion in civil proceedings in the European Union.

The ratio between the number of cases pending at the beginning of a year and the number of cases concluded in that year show that in 2015, the rate in Portugal was 214%, according to data compiled by Pordata Europe.

The nation’s courts are clogged, with Portugal’s problem way ahead of the second most inefficient in Europe, Greece, which has a ‘congestion rate’ of only 105%.

In Poland and Lithuania the percentage is less than 20%.

Pordata rather weakly points out that in the last four years this percentage has been 'decreasing in Portugal,' little comfort for those left twisting in the wind.

As of December 31, 2016, there were 1,136,292 court cases pending. Four years earlier, there were more than 1.6 million but some of the reduction has been effected by a justice minister wiping out many cases which she decided would yield no satisfaction to the plaintif.

The government points to the Citius computerised court case management system, the increase in court staff, the reopening of some courts that had been mothballed during the hair-brained closure programme of the often sober Justice Minister, Paula Teixeira da Cruz - all positive moves but clearly not even starting to address the problem.

Most of the cases that are waiting to be heard are related to debt collection procedures which are blocking non-debt civil cases where those involved can wait four or more years even to have their case scheduled for its first hearing.

As for prison overcrowding, Pordata shows that Portugal’s prison system is at 112% occupancy, against 127% in Hungary at the top of the table, and 49% in Luxembourg at the bottom.

The data also showed that in 2015, in most European countries there was a high percentage of foreigners among the total number of prisoners.

In Portugal, for example, 17% of inmates are foreign in a country where the percentage of foreign residents represents about 4% of the population.

Portugal’s shameful attempt at a modern justice system can not simply be blamed on a lack of magistrates as Portugal has 17 per 100,000 inhabitants, less than half of those registered in Croatia, Slovenia and Luxembourg, but much higher than in France and Ireland, whose value is less than 10 per 100,000.

Successive governments have done as little as politically possible to review this mess and to take decisive and inspired action on behalf of those many citizens for whom, ‘justice delayed, is justice denied.’

**Max** Thu Oct 26, 2017 3:45 am

https://algarvedailynews.com/news/12827-judge-unfit-to-judge

Judge unfit to judge

Created: 25 October 2017

Judge Neto de Moura, whose judicial decisions have widely been criticised for devaluing assaults on women, because they committed adultery or were not visibly bruised, also did not consider an assault on a four year old child as 'serious.'

According to Correio da Manhã, in 2010, when Neto de Moura was operating at the Lisbon Court of Appeal, he considered as ‘excessive’ the four-year and six-month sentence imposed on a man who had assaulted his wife and his four-year-old daughter.

The judge considered the fact that the child was kicked and slapped at home and on the street as being "within the limits of what is considered acceptable for a parent to correct a child."

For this judge and the second one who signed the judgment, the victims were not entitled to any psychological support because the consequences of the assaults were of "little importance, not going beyond a few bruises."

The judge pointed out that the accused had been quite restrained in his assault because he had not "used an instrument or weapon of any kind against the offended."

The man had his sentence reduced to three years, suspended, and was released.

Neto de Moura has been criticised for the recent domestic violence judgments in which he quoted the Bible to excuse the violent assaults suffered by a woman by her husband and another man for committing adultery. She was attacked with a nail-spiked club. (here)

The appeal summary justified the assault with a nail-spiked club by referring to the olden days when in certain civilizations, adultery was punishable by death.

In 2013, the same judge played down the assaults suffered by a woman who accused her husband of having punched her in the nose and bitten one of her hands when she had a newborn in her lap.

The woman attacked with a club, who was branded "adulterous" in a Biblical polemic in the ruling by the Oporto Court of Appeal, signed by Judges Joaquim Neto de Moura and Maria Luísa Abrantes, has not yet decided whether to bring any action against the State or against the individual judges.

Speaking to Diário de Notícias today, the victim's lawyer, Erica Durães, revealed that she will have a meeting with her client to study the alternatives, but that at the moment nothing is decided.

As for the judgment and the description of the victim, "a woman committing adultery is a false, hypocritical, dishonest, disloyal, futile, immoral person. In short, she lacks moral probity. It is not surprising that she resorts to deception, farce, lies to hide her disloyalty," the lawyer said that “it is clear that no human being can be satisfied with this. But whether the victim, who is very tired of it all, intends to mount a judicial action, I do not know. I have no instructions in that regard."

The President of the Republic commented today, Wednesday 25th October, on the controversial 'adultery' ruling from the Oporto Court of Appeal that used the Bible and the 1886 penal code to mitigate the crime of domestic violence, stating, somewhat enigmatically for those without a legal background, that "all holders of political power must comply and enforce the Constitution that came into force in 1976 and the laws that apply under that Constitution."

**Max** Thu Oct 26, 2017 4:00 am

https://algarvedailynews.com/features/thoughts-from-lisbon/12833-women-attacked-by-a-medieval-court-sentence-in-portugal

Women attacked by a medieval court sentence in Portugal

Written By James Mayor

Portugal is decidedly a land of contrast. The country which over 500 years ago pioneered globalization and which today continues to innovate with its sophisticated system of Multibanco ATMs can equally, on occasion, appear to repudiate liberal values.

A single European country is today stealing the limelight with an economic comeback based on tourism and foreign investment, much of it high-end: Portugal. However, in Portugal’s most hip city, Porto, an appeal court recently upheld a light sentence for two men who attacked a woman with a nail-spiked club, driven to this violence by her adultery.

Referring to the “depressive state” of the two defendants – the woman’s ex-husband and her former lover – judges Joaquim Neto de Moura and Maria Luísa Abrantes wrote, “we read in the Bible that an adulteress should be punished with death.” The State and the Catholic church were separated during the First Portuguese Republic, early in the twentieth century.

The judgement continued, “a woman committing adultery is a false, hypocritical, dishonest, disloyal, futile, immoral person. In short, she lacks moral probity. It is not surprising that she resorts to deception, farce, lies to hide her disloyalty.” It did not make any comment on men who commit adultery.

We may imagine how extremely discouraged the victim must be feeling. In the circumstances it would take immense energy to decide to continue the fight for a fair trial, sentence and compensation.

This retrograde judgement on the contrary offers a signal of encouragement to other women-bashing macho men and their judicial defenders. Judge Joaquim Neto de Moura already attracted attention to himself in 2010, when he considered that a child being kicked and slapped at home and on the street was “within the limits of what is considered acceptable for a parent to correct a child.”

In a developed democracy, the legal system is generally in phase with the majority of public opinion. I do not for a moment imagine that the judgement handed out by judges Joaquim Neto de Moura and Maria Luísa Abrantes reflects the majority of contemporary Portuguese opinion.

Should both these judges be relieved of their responsibilities? Does a mechanism exist for making this possible, or are these disturbing individuals protected by the ‘crony’ system?

**Max** Fri Nov 03, 2017 1:54 am

http://portugalresident.com/judges-%E2%80%98close-ranks%E2%80%99-as-mps-join-outrage-over-%E2%80%98spiked-club-beating%E2%80%99-reprieve

Judges ‘close ranks’ as MPs join outrage over ‘spiked club beating’ reprieve

Judges appear to have closed ranks around colleagues who spared two men jail sentences for attacking a woman on the basis that she was an adulteress and that adultery is a “very serious attack on a man’s honour and dignity” (click here).

As MPs rally to the wave of outrage, president of the Supreme Court of Justice António Henriques Gaspar has slammed the “intensity and violence of criticism”, saying it does no good service to justice, nor does it help defend the victims”.

It was not immediately clear whether he meant the victims of domestic violence - as per this particular case - or ‘victims’ of judicial decision-making.

But Henriques Gaspar ended his cutting tirade with reference to people “crying crocodile tears” and putting the “confidence in Justice” at risk.

He was speaking at the inauguration of the new president of Porto’s Court of Appeal - the same tribunal in which judges Neto de Moura, backed by Maria Luísa Arantes, delivered their unpopular ruling (click here).

He told the packed chamber: “"The manifestation of personal beliefs and states of soul and formulations of language of excessive subjectivity, are certainly not helpful as an argument and do not contribute to the quality of jurisprudence."

As Público remarked, neither Neto de Moura nor Maria Luísa Arantes were in the audience, though both had been in the courthouse “away from the media spotlight and their peers” earlier in the day.

Meantime, the parliamentary subcommission for Equality and Non-Discrimination has indicated that it will be formulating a note in which it will explain its “perplexity and vehement repudiation” of the legal reasoning used by the judges.

Bloco de Esquerda MPs have also openly labelled the ruling misogynistic, citing previous Neto de Moura decisions that show “hatred of women” in general.

According to BE MP Sandra Cunha, judges like Neto de Moura “cannot judge crimes of domestic violence”.

“We know that this is not a one-off isolated case for this judge”, she added, stressing that “only 16% of complaints about domestic violence get to court and in more than 90% condemnations result in suspended sentences”.

The situation “shows that domestic violence is not taken seriously and that there is a tendency to exculpate (take the blame off) aggressors, which translates into a feeling of impunity for criminals” and leaves victims feeling completely unprotected.

As media stories explained yesterday, protests against the judgement are planned this weekend in Lisbon, Porto and Coimbra.

**Max** Sat Nov 04, 2017 4:14 am

https://algarvedailynews.com/news/12898-adultery-judge-awaits-case-review-with-serenity

02 NOVEMBER 2017

Adultery judge awaits case review 'with serenity'

Neto de Moura, the judge from the Oporto Court of Appeal who has been severely criticised for playing down a violent assault with a weapon on a woman who had an affair, is said by his lawyer, to be “serene awaiting the outcome.”

Ricardo Serrano Vieira, a lawyer for the judge who will be heard on Friday at the Supreme Court of Justice, said that "the judgment in question is irreproachable from a legal point of view."

The hastily arranged hearing comes after the Superior Council of Magistrates opened an investigation to review the judge’s evaluation of the case in which Neto invoked the Bible, the Penal Code of 1886 and civilizations that punish adultery with the death penalty, to play down the violence and injury inflicted on the victim by her husband and her former lover.

The president of the Supreme Court of Justice has already reacted to the controversy. António Henriques Gaspar said that "personal beliefs and states of the soul are not helpful as arguments."

Gaspar’s endorsement of Neto’s ruling, in which the sentences handed to the men were suspended, despite their having attacked the woman with a nail-studded club, have caused national and international outrage and demonstrations.

A petition on the internet has been signed by nearly 19,000 people calling for the Ombudsman to act.

**Sabot** Sat Nov 04, 2017 4:25 am

This is the first time I have seen this Thread. I am appalled.

Thanks for your efforts, Max.

**Max** Tue Nov 07, 2017 3:45 am

It's horrifying, isn't it Sabot. It makes you wonder what century some of these judges are living in.

**Max** Thu Dec 07, 2017 3:00 am

https://algarvedailynews.com/news/13141-judges-in-adultery-case-face-disciplinary-hearings-over-biblical-justification-for-violence

05 DECEMBER 2017

Judges face disciplinary hearings over 'Biblical justification' for violence

justiceClubThe two judges who ruled in the so-called ‘domestic violence’ case, where a woman was attacked with a nail-spiked club by her husband and former lover, are to be subject to a disciplinary procedure.

The case triggered widespread national and international outrage when the judges’ summary partly excused the husband’s attack as he had been depressed and his honour and dignity had been besmirched by his wife’s behaviour - anyway 'there's far worse in the Bible.'

Joaquim Neto de Moura and Maria Luísa Arantes will be subject to disciplinary proceedings, according to a statement today by Judge Mario Morgado, vice president of the Superior Council of Magistrates.

The decision was taken on Tuesday by the body that supervises and regulates the magistrates but, shockingly, the decision was not unanimous with 12 votes in favour of disciplinary proceedings and five against.

Judge Neto de Moura, will answer charges of violation of a duty and not acting in the public interest while Maria Luísa Arantes, the judge who signed the judgement, will answer charges of violation of the duty of care as she admitted in October that she had not read the complete text of the judgment written by her colleague - but signed it anyway.

The controversial and positively archaic judgment handed down in October 2017, in which Neto de Moura censured the woman who had been savagely beaten with a spiked club for having been unfaithful, cited the Bible and Portugal's Penal Code of 1886 to justify and excuse violence against women.

"The adultery of the woman is a very serious attack on the honour and dignity of man. Societies exist where the adulterous woman is stoned to death. In the Bible, we can read that the adulterous woman should be punished with death," wrote Neto de Moura in the sentence summary.

**Sabot** Thu Dec 07, 2017 3:16 am

It surely is time that Portugal took a look at some of it's Judges. Too often the judgements are seriously flawed but until now there doesn't seem to have been anyone able or prepared to gainsay them.
And the higher up The Court System some of these cases go then the worse it seems to get. This could be due to the ages of these Judges, and their links to the old system of Fascism.

Ten years ago I had no idea of how biased it all was. So hopefully the abduction of Madeleine has achieved something. The World is now looking at Portugal.

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