Barcelona courts held over 8,000 fast-track trials and added 5,000 agreements during 2025, according to the chief judge. The anti-reoffending plan speeds up judicial response, although hearings still take a year.
Barcelona courts resolved just over 13,000 fast-track trials for reoffending crimes last year, according to the judicial activity report for 2025 presented by chief judge Cristina Ferrando. Of that figure, more than 8,000 were fast-track trials held and around 5,000 agreements reached before trial.
The reinforcement plan against reoffending, implemented to expedite responses to less serious crimes such as violent thefts or aggravated shoplifting, allowed 3,500 of those trials to be processed by reinforcement judges. The rest corresponded to the 25 permanent ordinary judges, supplemented by support judges.
Ferrando explained that hearings for these crimes, which can carry sentences of up to five years in prison, are now being scheduled a year in advance. The delay had approached two years before the plan, although it is still far from the recommended legal timeframes.
In the case of immediate trials for minor offences – mainly thefts valued under 400 euros – the third on-duty court has reduced the scheduling time to less than a month. Previously, the average wait was 8.8 months.
Despite the progress, the chief judge warned that the criminal jurisdiction in Barcelona needs a minimum of 12 new judge positions to cope with the current workload. Of these, four should be allocated to criminal execution, an area particularly strained.
The execution of sentences is significantly delayed due to an “understaffed” office workforce, both in the criminal and juvenile areas. Ferrando described this insufficiency as “concerning” and noted that there are around 16,000 sentences pending execution.
Overall, the judicial bodies in Barcelona received 449,999 cases during 2025, a 7.08% increase from the previous year. The criminal order saw the largest increase: a 6.74% rise in investigations (from 125,861 to 134,348 cases) and a 6.59% increase in criminal trials.
Resolutive activity also grew by 6.08% compared to 2024. However, pending cases in the criminal sector increased by 6.59% by the end of the year, reflecting that the influx of new cases exceeds the resolution capacity.
The report highlights that the investigating courts are not only facing a gradual increase in cases but also greater complexity. Cases involving economic crimes – especially online scams – require technological investigation procedures that extend timelines.
There are also increasingly complex cases linked to organised crime, which often involve requests for assistance to other countries. Additionally, the chief judge noted a gradual increase in violent or intimidating thefts, with organised groups dedicated to watch thefts making investigations more complex.
For residents of the province of Barcelona, the acceleration of fast-track trials means a more immediate response to less serious crimes affecting everyday safety. However, the backlog in executing sentences and the lack of judicial staff remain ongoing issues.
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