Portuguese justice may be about to gain new instruments to stop procedural delays, with judges now able to impose fines of up to 10,200 euros for behavior considered dilatory. The bill has already been submitted to Parliament and introduces relevant changes to the way processes are conducted and sanctioned.
At issue are practices that, according to the Government, contribute to the excessive delay of processes, especially in complex cases, and which the current legal framework cannot effectively dissuade.
The Público newspaper highlights that the new regime provides that fines imposed for unjustified delays must be paid within 10 days after the decision becomes final, under penalty of an automatic increase of 50% of the value.
This change represents a significant leap compared to the current regime, which already allowed the imposition of fines, but with a maximum ceiling of 1,539 euros, considered little deterrent in large-scale cases.
Lawyers and incidents under increased surveillance
Lawyers convicted twice in the same process for delaying maneuvers now risk the opening of disciplinary investigations, reinforcing professional accountability. The publication adds that the figure of “defense against abusive delays” is created, designed to respond to manifestly unfounded requests and incidents presented, above all, in the appeal phase to delay final decisions.
The proposal assigns judges a reinforced duty of procedural management, obliging them to actively direct the process and to promote ex officio the steps necessary for its speedy progress. It is also stated that magistrates must prohibit manifestly impertinent or delaying procedures during the hearing, consolidating a more intervening role in the conduct of proceedings.
Sentences, refusals and recurring practices
According to , the diploma also changes the regime for the incident of judge refusal, determining that its presentation no longer suspends the process, allowing the judge concerned to continue carrying out acts, even if not urgent.
The newspaper explains that the proposal also aims to stop situations in which sentences are read but not deposited in the secretariat, with the provision that, barring exceptions, delivery must be immediate, under penalty of the decision being considered as not given.
Only at a later stage in the legal text does the framework for the measure appear, which, according to the publication, results from recommendations from a working group of the Superior Council of the Judiciary, gathered in the report Megaprocesses and Criminal Procedure: Charter for Speed and Better Justice.
The same source adds that the proposal had already been approved by the Council of Ministers in December and aims to respond to old criticisms about the structural slowness of Justice, providing the courts with mechanisms considered more effective to discipline the process.
Also read:
