MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Spanish judges and prosecutors visit Gibraltar to foster professional contacts

Gibraltar Justice Minister Daniel Feetham

A group of Spanish judges and prosecutors paid a historic first visit to Gibraltar’s courts on Monday. This was the second part of a cross-border initiative that aims to foster professional contacts between judges on both sides of the Bay of Gibraltar, reports the Gibraltar Chronicle.

In late 2008, lay magistrates from Gibraltar visited court facilities in Algeciras, which is home to both local and regional courthouses handling criminal and civil cases.

“We’re here to visit the courts and learn about the workings of the judicial system in Gibraltar,” said Manuel Gutierrez Luna, the senior judge in the Audiencia Provincial in Algeciras. “It’s the first visit of this sort that we’ve ever organised, though of course at a personal level we’ve been to Gibraltar before”.

The judges began their visit by calling on Justice Minister Daniel Feetham at No.6 Convent Place, from where they visited the courts to sit in on live cases and later meet with senior members of the judiciary.

The Spanish delegation was accompanied throughout the visit by representatives from the Gibraltar Magistrates Association, which organised the visit.

“The more we understand about how each other’s systems work, the more you can improve on your own,” said Dr John Cortes, the association’s chairman.

The contact between the judiciary on either side of the bay was purely at a professional level, although practical matters were inevitably discussed informally during private conversations. However judicial co-operation is one of the key matters currently under discussion within the Trilateral Forum (UK, Gibraltar and Spain).

“We haven’t discussed issues to do with judicial cooperation because that subject is a matter for the Tripartite Forum,” Mr Feetham said. “But I think this sort of visit helps to foster better relations.”

“We’ve exchanged views on our respective legal systems and this helps to break down barriers and create greater understanding”. At the suggestion of magistrate Luna during his chat with Mr Feetham, both sides will now look to establish the visits as a formal annual event.