Over the past year, a new specialization has emerged in the courts, focused on investigating crimes in which the victims are children or adolescents. This has raised several questions about the limits of its jurisdiction and remains a source of disagreement between the judiciary and the Public Prosecutor's Office. The law that designed this specialty It did not specify, for example, whether sexual assaults against girls should fall under these new courts or under those specializing in violence against women, to which The same judicial reform assigned jurisdiction over all sexual offenses.The reform also failed to stipulate who should handle cases of sexual assault against girls reported years later, when the victims are adults, as a Barcelona judge has now raised in a ruling obtained by ARA. Within the judiciary and the Public Prosecutor's Office, there were differing opinions in this debate. On the one hand, some argued that sexual violence against girls should be investigated by the same courts that handle sexual assaults against adults. So far this year, as a result of this same reform, courts specializing in violence against women have jurisdiction over all sexual violence, not just domestic violence, as was the case previously. On the other hand, other legal experts warned that this would mean that sexual assaults against minors would have to be referred to different courts depending on whether the victim was a boy or a girl: boys would go to juvenile courts and girls to courts specializing in violence against women. Another argument in favor of leaving all cases in the hands of the new child abuse courts is their specialization and the fact that they utilize resources such as the Barnahus, where children can be interviewed by psychologists and educators in a less hostile environment than a courtroom.

A few weeks ago, the Ministry of Justice announced a "historic" expansion of the judges' staff to be created this year 500 new places across the country, 91 of which are in CataloniaHowever, the distribution of these new positions remained to be determined. The Spanish government's initial proposal failed to gain traction with either the Catalan Ministry of Justice or the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC), which have now submitted identical amendments. "We anticipate that these proposals will be considered by the Ministry," stated the Catalan Minister of Justice, Ramon Espadaler. With these 91 new judicial units, Catalonia will increase from 871 to 962. Most will be new positions in ordinary courts, but the number of judges in the provincial courts will also be increased. Lleida and Tarragona will each gain one more judge, Girona two, and Barcelona fourteen—six for the criminal divisions and eight for the civil divisions. A new judgeship will also be created for the TSJC.

The prosecution expects that most of the victims of the massive real estate scam with more than a hundred victims so they can recover their homes. On Monday, the 17 people involved in the scam accepted sentences ranging up to four years and seven months in prison—the highest sentences were given to a lawyer and a notary—and next week the court will decide how to resolve the civil liabilities in the case. In cases where the victims cannot recover their properties, the prosecution has requested that they be compensated with the current value of the apartments.

"Knowledge, without interaction, stays in the classroom." This is how Francisco Nicolás Gómez Iglesias presents it. alias Little NicholasHis latest escapade: an online course offering his followers training to become him. Titled Mr. PresidentIn this "training program," Francisco Nicolás promises to teach them how to manipulate the "invisible strings" of power that move in the stands of the Bernabéu stadium, at private dinners with the elite, and in the boardrooms of large companies. And all for the price of 600 euros—560 for those who booked before it started on January 19. Taxes included.

The judge in the Montoro case takes another step in the investigation. The head of court number 2 in Tarragona, who is investigating the alleged scheme of tax favors to companies from the Ministry of Finance In exchange for financial benefits, he has requested a whole series of documents from the former PP minister and the companies under investigation. In a ruling that also extends the investigation for another six months, Judge Rubén Rus grants the request of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office and requires the judicial police to provide a whole series of information, including the deeds of constitution and dissolution of the marital property regimes of several of those under investigation, such as Montoro himself. He also requests the complete registry entries, reports, and annual accounts between 2008 and 2025 of Equipo Económico, the firm linked to the former minister and which investigators place at the epicenter of the alleged corruption network, and of other companies, including those listed.

The patient at Bellvitge Hospital with anorexia who accused a hospital orderly of abuse has reaffirmed her account of the various episodes of sexual assault she claims to have suffered. She did so this Monday during the first and last session of the trial held at the Barcelona Provincial Court. The orderly, sitting in the dock, denied the allegations and stated that he never had any physical contact with the patient, who was admitted to the eating disorder unit at Bellvitge, a center of the Catalan Health Institute (ICS) of the Generalitat of Catalonia. At the end of the trial, the prosecution requested a nine-year prison sentence for the orderly, a request that the private prosecution, representing the complainant, increased to ten years. The defense requested the defendant's acquittal. The ICS representative also denied any wrongdoing.

The Ministry of Justice announced on Monday that it will create 500 new judgeships across Spain this year, 91 of which will be in Catalonia. This represents an average increase of 8.5% in judgeships nationwide, and a 10.5% increase in Catalonia, from 870 to 960 judges and magistrates. The Ministry explained that this is "the largest expansion of the judicial system in history." Regarding the impact on Catalonia, the Catalan Minister of Justice, Ramon Espadaler, celebrated that the measure "puts an end to the historical shortage of judgeships" and brings Catalonia's number of judges in line with the national average. To illustrate the significance of this announcement, Espadaler noted that only 65 judicial positions had been created in Catalonia in the last 10 years. For now, the Ministry has presented a draft royal decree that is just beginning the legislative process. Without offering any timeline, Espadaler explained that before the legislation is finalized, they will assess with the judiciary whether any changes are needed in the allocation of these 91 judge and magistrate positions. The draft royal decree plans to bring new personnel to all judicial levels: the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC), the provincial courts, and the lower courts, formerly known as ordinary courts. the reform of the efficiency law"We have a unique opportunity to modernize the public justice system," the regional minister declared during a press conference this Monday. Although the regional ministry has not specified the cost, the national ministry estimates that creating a judicial position currently costs around €100,000, whereas before the reform it cost €500,000. Therefore, it calculates that the 500 judicial positions to be created nationwide will cost €55.7 million, compared to €260 million before the reform. The new positions to be created this year will also be distributed across all jurisdictions. Espadaler acknowledged that until now his team had focused primarily on strengthening the criminal justice system in the Barcelona district. a plan against repeat offenders that added five additional courts for fast-track trialsIn fact, these reinforcements will be stabilized with the 91 positions announced this Monday. This time, the new positions will cover all specialties and will expand staffing in areas such as commercial and civil law.

Fifty kilometers to reach a trial in Manresa: that's the distance that defendants, victims, witnesses, and lawyers from the Osona region have had to travel for more than six years. It wasn't until this week that criminal trials resumed in Vic, with a temporary solution in a basement on Ronda Camprodon, meaning those involved in the proceedings no longer need to travel to the Manresa courthouse, where public transport connections don't always make it easy to arrive on time. "Many lawyers have had to act as taxi drivers for their clients," explains Rogeli Montoliu, dean of the Vic Bar Association. "It's like a doctor who lives in Vic and has to go to the Hospital Clínic to perform surgery and have to take the patient in his car because the patient is also from Vic and has no other way to get there," criticizes Montoliu, who is also president of the Catalan Bar Council (Cicac). The lawyer asserts that over the years it has been "very common" for a hearing to be postponed because someone was unable to attend, and in this regard, he emphasizes that these trials—which deal with crimes such as theft, robbery, or traffic offenses—often involve "people with limited financial resources" who lack the means to attend. The trials now being held in Vic include crimes committed throughout the Osona region, and in fact, hearings have been scheduled in the new courtroom for the past three months to ensure it can be used normally from day one, according to sources at the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC). However, they add that for some time there will still be some cases tried in Manresa because they were already scheduled there and because with only one courtroom it would have been impossible to handle all the pending hearings.

The head of oncology atVall d'Hebron Hospital in Barcelona, ​​Josep Tabernero, On Thursday, he distanced himself from the creation of the companies that the chemical entrepreneur and patron Pere Mir established in Panama before his death in 2017. The specialist testified as a suspect in the court investigating the case for disloyal administration and misappropriation, asserting that he kept the house "according to Mir's last wishes." He also emphasized that the patron verbally expressed this decision and that the money he received corresponded to the taxes he had to pay to make the donation effective. According to judicial sources, Tabernero appeared before the judge of Barcelona's Court of Instruction Number 12 as a suspect, along with Pere Mir's trusted associate, Jordi Segarra, and the third executor, Francisco Capellas, for allegedly misappropriating fund of heir foundations, such as CellexTabernero, who was Pere Mir's personal physician, explained to the judge that Mir told him he would bequeath a house in Baqueira to him upon his death. He claimed that, as the patron of one of the properties, he was "scientific" without being involved in any economic or business decisions. As a patron, he added, he also made no decisions. The judge attributes to Tabernero a "direct involvement" in the donation of a property in Baqueira, originating from a company within Pere Mir's network, of which the doctor was a beneficiary, as well as receiving 312,000 euros from the patron's estate. In contrast, the oncologist's defense presented a notarized statement in which the property's maintenance manager indicated that Mir had confided in him that Tabernero and his wife would visit the property to see it, since they would inherit it upon his death, as a gesture of gratitude. Furthermore, the doctor explained that the €312,000 he received after Mir's death were used to pay the taxes related to the donation of the property to Baqueira.

Members of the Junts per Catalunya leadership paraded through the City of Justice this Wednesday. The meeting was directly related to a case that rocked the party five years ago: the party suspended its member of parliament, Eduard Pujol, from membership following two alleged cases of sexual harassment. Neither of the two women filed a formal complaint, and Pujol responded by accusing them. Months later, the party reinstated him, and Pujol is now a senator for Junts. Meanwhile, one of his accusers, a city councilor for the party, He apologized to her. And the legal case went no further. The case of the second complainant has gone to trial, and it began at the City of Justice. The woman is accused of slander and harassment, and this Wednesday she testified, along with Pujol himself and some prominent members of Junts, such as Albert Batet and Jordi Sànchez.

Daniel Escribano (Palma, 1978) holds a PhD in sociology and is a translator. He has published Political trials under Spanish militant democracy (Documenta Balear), in which he analyzes four judicial processes: the conviction of Batasuna senator Miguel Castells for pointing the finger at the government for the dirty war against ETA, the case of the siege of the Parliament in 2011, the case against Valtónic and the judicial repression of the Process.

It was a Tuesday in February 2007, and some customers entered the Acín shoe store in Sabadell. They saw that everything was in disarray. The shop assistant lay on the floor, covered in blood. She was dead. Eighteen years Afterwards, the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) are closer to solving the crime. The Central Homicide Unit, responsible for the most difficult murders to solve, never stopped investigating the case and finally found evidence against a 78-year-old plumber. This Wednesday, the man appeared before the Sabadell Court of Instruction Number 5 and was released on bail – his age was a significant factor in the decision – but his passport was confiscated, and he must appear in court every week. He is being investigated for murder with premeditation.

Bibiana Palomar has spent years navigating paperwork. Before, it was boxes and filing cabinets; now, more often, she's in front of screens. She leads a team that handles an essential but little-known task within the judicial system: cleaning up the multitude of documents generated by the administration of justice—not just paperwork, but also the court records used as evidence in trials.

One day after Santos Cerdán's release from prison, the PSOE is widening the gap between itself and its number three in order to shield itself from the alleged corruption scheme. This was made clear on Thursday by Minister Félix Bolaños, who stated that the latest report from the Central Operational Unit (UCO) The Civil Guard provides "solid evidence" against the former Socialist Party organizing secretary. "There are many things that are clear," added Minister Ángel Víctor Torres. "If [Cerdán]He claims there is evidence that they are lies."He will have to prove it," she added on Catalunya Ràdio. The former Socialist Party number three will have an opportunity to explain himself in December before the Senate's investigative committee. The People's Party (PP) has taken advantage of his release from prison to announce that it will summon him. "Now that he's free and has time," the PP spokesperson in the Senate quipped. Speaking to the media at an event in Madrid this morning, she asserted that those at the party headquarters in Ferraz are "very disappointed and shocked" by the new developments in the case when asked about the alleged 2% commissions that, according to the UCO (Central Operative Unit of the Civil Guard), Cerdán received in exchange for awarding public works contracts to Acciona. "We had the information we have. If we had, we would have behaved differently," she emphasized. Juanfran Serrano, Cerdán's former deputy in the PSOE's organizational secretariat, also expressed his shock at the revelations about Cerdán. The PP has also summoned him to the Senate. In his case, a date has already been set for Thursday, December 4th. He admitted that the latest information on the case is "damaging" to the party, but they have emphasized the speed and "forcefulness" of their actions in relation to the scheme. "It didn't affect the party, but rather it was a scheme involving specific individuals," Bolaños said. And he added: "We are absolutely certain that there is no irregular financing."

A Barcelona court has acquitted Paco Peral, the father of Rosa Peral, in the case in which he was accused of lying to protect her while she was being investigated for the murder of a member of the Barcelona Municipal Police. The ruling confirms that the man lied to the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) who were handling the case, but dismisses a conviction because the deception had no bearing on determining his daughter's guilt. Former Municipal Police officer Rosa Peral is serving a sentence for the 2017 murder of her partner, fellow officer Pedro Rodríguez, committed along with her lover and patrol partner, Albert López.

Did Leire Díez offer legal benefits in exchange for dirty laundry about Civil Guard investigators? And if so, was she acting on behalf of the PSOE? Whose orders was she following? Both she and the socialists deny That the journalist and former activist worked for the party, a new audio recording points in the opposite direction. According to the recording of a conversation she had with prosecutor Ignacio Stampa, which has been leaked to media outlets in recent hours such as The Country and The WorldDíez presented himself as "the person the PSOE has put in place" and, more specifically, as the "right-hand man" of Santos Cerdán, former number three in the party and now under investigation—and in pretrial detention—in the Koldo case.

The DNA of Ana Echaguibel, the last person investigated for the 2001 murder of Helena Jubany in Sabadell, was not found on the sweater the victim was wearing on the day of her death, according to a statement released by the Jubany family. Echaguibel was previously investigated for this crime in 2003, but the case against her was eventually dismissed. Just two months ago, the judge decided to reopen the investigation, specifically to collect DNA samples from her and compare them with those found on the sweater. The analysis concluded that the suspect's genetic profile "is neither a match nor compatible with the profiles obtained." in the jersey that Jubany was wearingthe day she was pushed from the rooftop of a building in Sabadell.

Oriol Pujol, son of the former president of the Generalitat, has broken his silence after eleven years and just a few weeks before the Trial of the family for organized crimeThe trial, which begins on November 24 at the National Court, has been described by the former prime minister as wanting to attend the trial. "My father wants to go to the trial," he stated in an interview on Catalunya Ràdio's "El Matí." He acknowledged that the former prime minister, who served for 23 years, has cognitive problems. as published The NewspaperHe has a "speech problem" and "has trouble remembering the names of his children or grandchildren." But he made it clear that "he is not a useless man or someone who needs to be disqualified," and clarified that his goal is to be able to participate in the trial remotely, without having to travel to Madrid.

"It's hard to stay away from drug lords; they still have a lot of influence. Some people join out of fear. They're untouchable. They wanted me to work for them, and I refused." Port of Barcelona stevedore Carlos L. testified Tuesday in court that he lives as a victim: four men, two of them Mossos d'Esquadra officers, They sit in the dock for having put drugs and weapons in their car. in 2016 and trying to implicate him in a crime. The events are being tried in a small courtroom at the Barcelona Court, and Carlos L. spoke less than a meter from the four defendants. "No, I didn't know them," he stated as he reviewed the four men one by one. One of them also responded by shaking his head.

The Barcelona Court of Appeals has annulled the judicial intervention of the Cellex and Mir Puig scientific foundations ordered in April by the court investigating alleged irregularities in the management of the estate of chemist Pere Mir, founder of both entities, who upon his death in 2017 left three people in his will to manage his legacy. These are oncologist Josep Tabernero, the former president of the boards of trustees of both foundations, Jordi Segarra, and lawyer Juan Francisco Capellas.