The courts lack thousands of lay judges. Untilized positions affect the pace of the court's work

6611 – this is the current number of bench vacancies in courts. To get out of the collapse, a change of regulations and a specific project is needed, and there is no such time. However, there are ideas for reform. Will the new Minister of Justice use them? – Asks Rzeczpospolita.

According to applicable law, the lay judges have the same position as professional judges. However, they cannot chair the trial, but they are allowed to ask questions to the participants of the proceedings, and lay judges also vote on the sentence.

According to Rzeczpospolita, the number of lay judges decreases with the term of office. 20 years ago there were over 44,000, currently just over 6,000. In Warsaw alone, there are 200 of them, which raises fears that some cases may not be considered. The reason is, among others Low rates, currently lay judges receive PLN 212.21 gross per day of work. The changes were announced by the Ministry of Justice, but – as the daily indicates – it didn't do much.

According to experts cited in the article, legislative changes are needed. In addition to increasing rates, it is mentioned, among others The need to create social facilities for lay judges, introduce a training system or promotion of this occupation. According to the article, this is a burning problem, because unhappy positions affect the pace of court work. Data is recalled by which since 2011 the waiting time for the judgment of the Court of First Instance increased by almost 70 percent. and was almost 13 months. (PAP)

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