Audiences in rooms that reach 40 degrees. Magistrates and other employees to take their own fans to work. Unsupervised courts and precarious infrastructure. These were some of the facts noted by the Union of Public Prosecutors (SMMP), which began a series of plenary sessions across the country.
The first meetings were held in the Santarém, Leiria, Coimbra and Viseu brands, between October 8th and 9th. In Santarém, the situation is described as “serious” by the union. “In the District of Santarém, the problems are particularly serious. The degradation of infrastructure, with infiltrations, lack of air conditioning and extreme temperatures, makes it impossible to carry out investigations in dignified conditions”, reads a statement sent to DN.
To alleviate the heat on high-temperature days, judges and other employees take their own equipment from home to work. “In courts such as Benavente, Almeirim, Torres Novas and Santarém, there are courtrooms that reach 40ºC in the summer, without any air conditioning system, forcing magistrates and employees to use equipment acquired on their own initiative.”
In addition to the lack of private security, there is a lack of personnel. “The district has a deficit of more than 14% of bailiffs, which exceeds 20% when prolonged absenteeism is taken into account. The high average age and the growing number of planned reforms worsen the situation.”
With the lack of professionals, there is an overload of work, with more sensitive areas, namely computer crimes. “Judges accumulate technical and administrative functions without any support. The lack of definition regarding the maintenance of auxiliary positions and the failure to fill permanent positions generate instability and compromise procedural management.”
In Leiria, it was identified that “each magistrate is in charge of around 850 investigations, with an average of 40 daily conclusions for dispatch – which translates into just 10 minutes per process”. The framework foresees between 53 and 56 Public Prosecutors, but 49 magistrates were placed in the 2025/2026 movement.
In the region of Coimbra, the infrastructure situation is also described as critical. “DIAP operates in a building shared with commercial and clinical services, such as a hairdresser, dental office and cardiology clinic, compromising the reserve required for the activity of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.” Lack of space is another problem, forcing magistrates to share offices and “making sensitive procedures difficult”. Each magistrate manages around a thousand inquiries, with around 200 monthly entries and between 40 and 50 are dispatched per day.
In Viseu, there are 36 magistrates, compared to a predicted staff of between 40 and 43. Each professional is in charge of around 850 inquiries and dispatches around 40 per day. The facilities are described as “reasonable”, but there is a lack of rooms for hearing victims, requiring the creation of internal scales. There is also a lack of technological means for remote operations, such as computers, video and sound systems or digital readers.
As an assessment of the first plenary sessions, the SSMP “considers that these conditions put the functioning of justice at risk, with a direct impact on professionals and citizens who depend on it”. The itinerary will continue until the country’s 23 districts are covered.
The union’s objective is to “identify the main structural and operational obstacles that compromise the activity of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the regular functioning of the courts”. At the end of this cycle of meetings, the SMMP will prepare a statement of demands with concrete proposals, to be presented to the guardianship, with a requirement for “urgent measures”.
OE 2026 with resources for works
The 2026 State Budget provides for the allocation of 2027.5 million euros in revenue and expenditure, which means an increase of 13.5% compared to the year 2025 in the area of Justice.
87.4 million euros are planned for investments in the area of justice. Of these, 36.8 million euros are allocated to requalification works and construction of buildings at the Ministry of Justice. The report cites, as examples, “courts, prisons, Judicial Police facilities, among others”. There is also 20.2 million euros related to funds budgeted under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR).
amanda.lima@dn.pt