Court to run parallel trials as criminal list builds up

The Gibraltar Courts Service [GCS] will be running criminal trials in parallel for several months as from September as part of proactive steps to avoid a backlog of cases building up.

The decision comes against the backdrop of a year-on-year jump in cases in 2024 compared to 2023, some of which will continue to impact the court diary into 2026.

The courts normally handle one criminal trial at a time to ensure other types of cases can be comfortably accommodated, though it has on occasion in the past handled more than one simultaneously if the caseload is heavy.

Over the past 10 years, the annual number of criminal matters reaching the Supreme Court has averaged around 40, according to data provided by GCS.

That figure includes effective trials, sentencings and discontinued matters.

Buit the number of criminal matters coming before the courts fluctuates, making the management of the courts’ resources challenging.

In 2023, for example, there were 27 criminal matters before the courts, a figure that rose to 45 in 2024.

“Whilst we do not consider that there is a backlog, the Gibraltar Courts Service and the judiciary remain proactive in managing the criminal list to avoid one developing,” a spokesperson for the GCS told the Chronicle.

The oldest current matter is a case from 2024 that was originally listed for trial in March 2025 but could not proceed following the unexpected death of leading counsel.

New counsel was subsequently appointed and the trial is now listed for March 2026.

“The target is that once a case is ready to be set down for trial, it should be given a trial date within a three to six-month window,” the GCS spokesperson said.

“On occasion this may not be possible, due to factors beyond the court’s control, such as witness or counsel availability, the occasional need to secure the services of senior counsel or, less usual, court diary commitments.”

“Between September and December 2025, four additional matters have already been listed to run alongside other criminal trials.”

“The majority of the first quarter of 2026 has also been earmarked so that two trials can be heard simultaneously.”

Running two criminal trials simultaneously is not a straightforward exercise and impacts on other areas of the courts’ work, including sensitive cases that require urgent intervention.

That means resources must be carefully managed to ensure there is no knock-on impact on priority cases.

“Setting down trials in parallel necessarily impacts the court’s ability to deal with matters in other jurisdictions and requires additional staff resources, since criminal trials demand more support than most civil cases,” the GCS spokesperson said.

“Parallel listing is therefore used as and when necessary to prevent the build-up of a backlog.”

“The standing instruction of the Chief Justice is that cases involving defendants on remand; cases with vulnerable witnesses; and in the family jurisdiction cases concerning the welfare of children, are always to be given priority.”

Chief Justice Anthony Dudley has also highlighted the importance of efficient case management to ensure trials are expedited as swiftly as possible.

Mr Justice Dudley noted during a recent case-management session that factors such as late applications and unnecessarily long witness lists, even often in relatively straightforward cases, were often delaying the process of bringing criminal cases to trial.
“The length of trials has been increasing in recent years and there have been a number of trials which, on the first day of the trial, have not been effective and have had to be relisted,” the spokesperson GCS said.

“In addition to the matters mentioned above, such as late applications, long witness lists, witness availability and difficulties in securing senior counsel, can all affect the time it takes for a case to get to trial.”