Briefing
The Government of Cantabria announced measures on 1 October 2026 to ease pressure in the short term on the Justice It will increase staffing at the Unidad de Valoración Forense Integral while also expanding psychosocial teams and integrating them more closely into court processes. The aim is to significantly reduce waiting times for forensic reports in domestic violence, gender-based violence and family court proceedings.
As justification, the government points to bottlenecks in forensic assessments documented in the “Memoria 2025” of the Fiscalía de la Comunidad Autónoma de Cantabria The delays described there particularly affect reports needed for protection orders and decisions on custody or contact. Representatives of the Instituto de Medicina Legal had reportedly already drawn attention to the backlog; the regional administration says it had simultaneously been working on specific staffing and organisational solutions.
The region’s director of justice administration announced that the additional staffing would be put in place over the coming weeks. Reviews of organisational changes, such as assigning psychosocial teams more clearly within the Instituto de Medicina Legal, are also planned to speed up processes further. Cantabria’s senior public prosecutor had previously called for a sustained expansion of forensic capacity; the government will evaluate the effectiveness of the short-term reinforcement before deciding on permanent posts and funding commitments.
In the short term, the authorities expect shorter waits for forensic reports and faster implementation of court protection measures. In the medium term, however, success will depend on creating permanent posts, clearly defined recruitment procedures and reliable funding. The regional government’s announcement did not specify the number of additional posts or a timetable; further details on the scale and locations of the measures are to follow once the new teams are operational.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).