The Ministry of Justice, Local Administration and Public Service has chosen Mijas as a "benchmark" in Málaga and Andalusia for the Municipal Justice Offices (OJM) model, which will operate "with the maximum powers and services permitted under the Efficiency Law for these structures that replace the old Peace Courts", said the Minister of Justice, José Antonio Nieto, during his visit to the town on Monday 9th, where he met with the mayoress, Ana Mata (PP), and members of the government team.

Nieto explained that "the over 90,000 residents of Mijas will be able to carry out procedures that until now they had to do in Fuengirola, the judicial district capital, such as obtaining court certificates, requesting a court-appointed lawyer, accessing mediation and victim assistance services, civil registry functions and even testifying by videoconference in trials". "Mijas is a municipality where public services need to improve and must be proportionate to a municipality that will soon reach 100,000 inhabitants", added the mayoress of Mijas, who stressed that "we are beginning this coordination process so that Mijas has judicial facilities in line with the needs and growth of its population".

 

Nieto and Mata are coordinating the launch of this new model, of which the regional government will implement a total of eight offices, with Mijas being the pioneer in the province. "In Mijas, it is particularly important as it serves a large population that is experiencing significant growth and already accounts for half of the residents of the judicial district", said Nieto.

More services and greater efficiency

For her part, the mayoress of Mijas, Ana Mata, pointed out that this new judicial facility "will improve the lives of the people of Mijas because it will facilitate their legal proceedings, bring such an important service closer to them and establish a new hub within the province".

"Mijas is the third largest municipality in terms of area and population in the province of Málaga, and its development confirms its status as a major city on the Costa del Sol that it already is, so we are grateful to the Junta de Andalucía for choosing us to launch this important programme", added the mayoress.

 

New headquarters

According to data provided by Nieto and Mata, "40% of the cases handled by the Court of First Instance in Fuengirola are from Mijas". This is one of the reasons why the regional government has increased the staff of the OJM by one more civil servant, and why the Town Hall is going to provide a new space that is larger than the current one in order to accommodate the new services planned.

This space is located in the former Acosol offices, in Las Lagunas, and will accommodate the new services and equipment required, such as videoconferencing rooms for remote testimony in court proceedings and spaces for mediation and assistance to vulnerable victims.

 

Nieto also emphasised the "institutional collaboration" between the two administrations to "anticipate needs, be more efficient and ensure that the residents are the main beneficiaries". At the new OJM, Mijas residents will be able to carry out the vast majority of the most common legal procedures without having to travel and will have access to new services such as the possibility of attempting mediation processes to reach agreements that avoid going to trial. "This is a very important step, and I would like to express my gratitude that Mijas has been chosen as the municipality in Málaga to launch this pilot project, which is backed by the new law", said Mata.

A more accessible justice system

For his part, the minister emphasised the Regional Government's commitment to a "more accessible and sustainable" justice system, which, Nieto added, "means bringing the service closer to where citizens live". Nieto also thanked the mayoress of Mijas for her willingness to roll out the OJM model in the town, which will gradually be extended to the rest of the province, as the Regional Ministry has chosen one municipality in each province as a pilot (Adra in Almería, Lepe in Huelva and Palma del Río in Córdoba, among others).

 

Unlike the old model of peace courts, which set the same functions for all of them, the Law on Efficiency in the Public Justice Service provides for different models of OJM with varying degrees of competence, and in Mijas the aim is to reach "the maximum" and be "a benchmark for the rest of Andalusia".

Peace Court

In Málaga, there are 92 Peace Courts, which, under the Efficiency Law, are being transformed into Municipal Justice Offices (13.14% of the 700 existing in Andalusia). Depending on the size of the municipalities, they are staffed by municipal personnel (fewer than 7,000 inhabitants) or by personnel dependent on the Regional Government. Of the 92 OJM in Malaga, 12 are staffed by civil servants from the Regional Ministry, which in many cases has increased its workforce to cope with this expansion of powers, as is the case in El Rincón de la Victoria, Alhaurín de la Torre and Mijas.

Specifically, in Mijas, a new judicial clerk has been hired, bringing the total staff to five civil servants, "and this will gradually increase" as new powers are assumed.

Finally, Nieto wanted to highlight "the Junta's efforts to put an end to the unjustified neglect that the province of Málaga has suffered for decades in terms of judicial infrastructure", he said, "with the promotion of new headquarters in Estepona, Marbella and Torrox, as well as the expansion of the City of Justice in the capital", he concluded.

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