More than 56,000 files were introduced in 2021 before the Vaudois courts and justices of the peace, an increase of 4% compared to 2020. In its annual report, the Vaudois Judicial Order (OJV) observes in particular an increase in serious cases of child abuse.
The activity of the OJV was less affected by the pandemic last year than in 2020. The authorities and judicial offices carried out their mission without interruption and delivered all of their services to litigants, summarized Wednesday before the urges the President of the Cantonal Court Eric Kaltenrieder.
“The activity was intense and the referral of hearings low in 2021, he underlined. In 2020, the restrictions linked to Covid-19 had caused the cancellation of 3,500 hearings before the courts and justices of the peace of the canton, of which around 90% had been reset in the same year and the rest, around 200, in 2021. All the delays in 2020 have therefore been made up for.
Effective deadlines
At the jurisdictional level, activity is on the rise again, with 56,011 new cases registered by the courts and justices of the peace, an increase of 4% compared to 2021 (53,934), but still less than in 2019 (58,096) before the coronavirus.
An almost equivalent number of cases were handled during the same period (55,819), making it possible to maintain stability in the overall number of cases pending at the end of the year. Processing times are also constant compared to 2020: 79% of files are processed in less than six months and 93% in less than a year.
“This is a positive assessment for judicial activity during the pandemic, with which I am very satisfied. The impact of the crisis has been brought under control. I am also very proud of the hard work accomplished by the approximately 1,600 employees of the OJV” , said Mr. Kaltenrieder.
Minors: multifactorial explanations
On the penal level, the number of new cases increased, sometimes markedly, before the criminal chambers of the district courts (+5%), the Court of compulsory measures (+1%) and the enforcement judge sentences (+7%), as well as before the Court of Criminal Appeal (+10%) and the Chamber of Criminal Appeals (+9%) of the Cantonal Court. Only the Juvenile Court is an exception, with a 10% drop in cases received.
A statistic to be taken with a grain of salt, according to Marie-Pierre Bernel, cantonal judge. “While there is indeed a drop in cases with the Juvenile Court, there is on the other hand an increase in serious offenses linked to violence among young people”, she explains. Offenses against life and bodily integrity increased by 33%, those against sexual integrity by 24% and crimes or offenses against liberty by 21%, she quotes.
Ms. Bernel puts forward multifactorial hypotheses to explain this resurgence of serious cases: the suffering of young people and the precariousness amplified for some during the pandemic, sports activities to exert themselves or even let off steam slowed down or even stopped, the lack of a family framework, the sudden recovery social and night life or the lack of structures for young offenders, which increases the risk of recidivism.
Bankruptcy fears
At the civil level, justices of the peace in the areas of litigation (+10%) and the protection of adults and children (+7%) also saw a significant increase in new cases. An increase, greater than in previous years, which is probably explained by the pandemic. The health crisis has undoubtedly impacted and worsened even more strongly the personal, financial and family situations that were already precarious before.
With regard to debt collection and bankruptcy offices, an increase in new requisitions (+4%) and in bankruptcy orders (+12%) should be noted, ie nearly 413,164 proceedings initiated and 2,085 bankruptcies declared. In this area, the situation could still “significantly” increase in the future, with the end of the various Covid-19 aid measures, fears the OJV.
This article has been published automatically. Source: ats