Opinion (José Lúcio-Judge): District of Beja - some notes and some complaints.
The Beja District Court has completed three and half years of operation, time justifying a brief look at the experience and factors that condition.
José Lúcio
(Judge President of Beja County)
As is well known, the new Judicial Court of Beja County was established by the Judiciary Organization Act which came into force on 1 September 2014.
Then came replace, and absorb skills, previous courts installed in Beja District (in Almodôvar, Cuba, Beja, Ferreira do Alentejo, Odemira, Ourique, Mértola, Moura and Serpa), realizing that way in this geographical area in order to reorganize the judicial map.
One court came into being in place of ten were extinct.
Consequently, and from said day 1 September 2014, date of entry into operation, the Judicial Court of the District of Beja, with its various central and local ordinances, It is entrusted with the administration of justice in the District of Beja, within its competence (civil, criminal, labor and family and minors).
As for how he has done we will not go into here and now on swings, it being understood however that, as we have been emphasized when the opportunity arises, any balance that is made will have to recognize the undeniable facts of the better use of existing resources and thereby improving the responsiveness of services, whatever the indicator recourse.
It however, up to safeguard appointed progress and defend its continuity in time, insist tirelessly from policy makers so that the shortcomings detected early and noted on the day the court will have indispensable solution.
The above-mentioned shortcomings concentrated in essentially two strands, which are specifically deficiencies in terms of physical facilities, and faults relating to personal secretary.
As it is known, centralization operated by the reform has exposed the inadequacies have long known of the judiciary Park in Beja.
Specifically, Beja in the Palace of Justice began to run the local civil and criminal judgments and civil and criminal judgments central, with a total of eight judges.
Obviously the building was not prepared for this picture, with only two rooms of audience and with few facilities, unable to host the secretariats, offices and other spaces required for processes, judges, employees and the public user.
Also in Beja, It remains indefinitely Labor Judgment situation, installed in an old building corner Civil Government without the proper features for the operation of a court and in a state of remarkable physical degradation.
Finally, the core further Beja, there was the relocation of the Family and Juvenile Court for Ferreira do Alentejo, decided "temporarily" no end of August 2014, precisely to circumvent the impossibility of their installation on the existing judicial Park in Beja.
This relocation collides head-on with the expressed intentions of reform, hence justified the choice of the district capital for the installation of new organic units precisely by these capitals constitute "focal points which are subject to a clear and immediate identification of the populations and have easy accessibility and guaranteed" (Strategic Guidelines for the Reform of Judicial Organization, 15 June 2012).
The operation of the Family Court and Juvenile in Ferreira do Alentejo has thrown up precisely the absence of such "easy and guaranteed accessibility", sacrificing the legitimate expectations of the people that need to use this instance, that the more serious because it is known that the users of the Family and Juvenile court usually identify with the sectors of the economically most vulnerable population.
The resulting diagnosis described framework has been unanimously espoused by all sector responsible: We must create the conditions in Beja to solve the saturation of the space of the old Palace of Justice, the relocation of Family and Children in Ferreira and the precariousness of labor facilities. This agreement in the diagnosis was born the project and the solemn promise to root construction of a new building in Beja that can house the Labor Courts and the Family and Minors and the services that now occupy the old Palace of Justice.
However, achieving the promised is not yet in sight. And so justified the worst fears about the perpetuation of the present situation.
Added to the problem of the lack of facilities completing tables the bailiff staff reaches all judgments and sections (and also the prosecution, condition that greatly affects the Court as the absence of placing MP force officials judicial departments to supply this lack with their elements).
Scrolling the map, notes that remain vacant this time a total of 29 official places of justice, considering the legally defined frameworks.
Now, how good it is to see, if the setting of the staff done officially, in view of the desirable operation of the services of the Court of Beja, This set for a total of 104 (one hundred and four) bailiffs, can not but be concluded that the lack of these 29, reducing staff effectively service for a mere 75 (scattered throughout the various units), You have to adversely affect the operation of the whole.
this means, in practice, that the services work normally under a third of the legally prescribed staff.
If we think of normal service shutdowns for purposes of retirement and the difficulties experienced with its replacement, if we also take into account unavoidable temporary sick leave or licenses, justified concern regarding this permanent staff deficit.
Bearing in mind the aims and objectives associated with judicial reform by policy makers, namely improving the quality of provision of justice services, and increasing the efficiency and speed of these services, one can not fail to claim the satisfaction of the minimum objective conditions necessary for that, particularly with the problems above.
(Text written under the previous rule to spell AO1990, by the author's option)
