Bill to let judges choose the members of Spain's judicial council

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill would change how the twelve council members drawn from the judiciary are chosen: active judges and magistrates would elect them directly, by personal, equal, direct and secret vote, using a single open list with up to six votes per voter.
2. The eight members from the jurist group would still be chosen by the Congress of Deputies and the Senate by a three-fifths majority, with over fifteen years of legal experience. People who held public office, government posts or party positions in the previous five years could not be chosen, and candidates would have to appear before both chambers in a public hearing.
3. It sets rules to avoid blockages: if a chamber fails to elect its members on time, the council would still be formed with the judges' picks and the outgoing members in office, and a new president could be elected if thirty working days pass without an appointment.
4. Judges who run as candidates for representative public office or accept a political position of trust would have to go on voluntary leave. After leaving that post, they could not return to active service for two years and, on returning, would spend two years in special administrative service assigned by the council.
5. Experience requirements would rise for certain posts: fifteen years of professional practice for prestigious jurists at the Superior Courts of Justice, and twenty years on the career plus service in a collegial court for magistrate posts at the Supreme Court.
6. Stronger majorities would be needed to appoint the council's vice president, chamber presidents of the National Court, presidents of the Superior Courts of Justice and Provincial Courts, and a certain Supreme Court magistrate: three fifths. It would also repeal Articles 570 bis and 598 bis, which limit the powers of council members in office after their term ends.

Who it affects

• Active judges and magistrates: They would directly elect the twelve judicial members of the council and face new leave rules if they take public or political posts.
• Prestigious jurists: They could apply for the eight jurist seats, with over fifteen years of experience and a public appearance before the chambers.
• Congress of Deputies and Senate: They would keep choosing the eight jurist members by a three-fifths majority, with new deadlines and rules if they miss them.
• General Council of the Judiciary (Consejo General del Poder Judicial): Its composition, renewal process and the majorities needed for some appointments would change.

Words worth knowing

Consejo General del Poder Judicial (CGPJ)

The governing body of Spain's judges. It does not decide cases, but appoints and manages judges and magistrates.

Vocal

Each of the twenty members who make up the General Council of the Judiciary.

Excedencia voluntaria

Voluntary leave: a judge temporarily leaves the judiciary and stops receiving a judge's salary.

Servicios especiales

Special service: administrative or government-related posts a judge can hold without hearing cases.

Tres quintos (three fifths)

A reinforced majority: the yes vote of 3 out of every 5 members present.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries