The Council of Ministers is set to authorize the establishment of 50 fresh positions for judges and 42 for prosecutors who specialize in gender violence. This move comes in response to the anticipated rise in workload stemming from a new legislation focused on enhancing the efficiency of the Public Justice Service, particularly for courts dedicated to gender violence cases.

This legislation requires that, starting October 2025, courts handling gender violence will also manage cases related to sexual crimes, even if there is no relationship between the perpetrator and the victim. This has prompted judges in this sector to raise concerns about potential system overload.

The increase in judge and prosecutor positions is the result of an agreement between the Ministry of Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Courts and the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ). Government sources highlight that this expansion is expected to boost the number of specialized judges in Spain by nearly 50%, where currently there are 116 such courts.

The government had previously announced the creation of around 50 new courts for gender violence. Initially, the plan was to establish fewer new positions and to convert existing instruction courts into specialized courts. After negotiations with the CGPJ, the decision was made to prioritize creating new courts while reducing conversions. Hence, out of the 50 new positions approved, 42 are entirely new, while only eight involve conversion. Each new judge role will be matched with a specialized prosecutor position.

A study by the CGPJ estimated a 12.9% average increase in workload for gender violence courts due to the new law. This impact varies across communities and judicial districts, ranging from 20% to 2.79%, depending on regional characteristics and available resources.

The most significant workload increase is projected for courts in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands, with estimates of 20.25% and 19.60%, respectively. Other regions like Murcia, Galicia, La Rioja, and Navarra anticipate rises between 17% and 18%. On the lower end, the Valencian Community, Andalusia, Aragon, and the Basque Country expect less dramatic increases.

Guided by this CGPJ study, the government has decided the distribution of new positions across communities, considering population and current court numbers: 10 in Andalusia, six in Madrid, five in the Valencian Community, four each in Catalonia, Galicia, and the Canary Islands, three each in Castilla-La Mancha, the Balearic Islands, and Extremadura, two each in Murcia and Castilla y León, and one each in Aragon, Asturias, Cantabria, and the Basque Country.

The decree also includes the establishment of specialized sections for violence against children and adolescents in specific judicial districts: Madrid, Barcelona, and Málaga.