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2007 Assessment

Argentina: Integrity Indicators Scorecard

Argentina: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Rule of Law
Indicators		Score
74	Is there an appeals mechanism for challenging criminal judgments?	58
75	In practice, do judgments in the criminal system follow written law?	75
76	In practice, are judicial decisions enforced by the state?	75
77	Is the judiciary able to act independently?	88
78	Are judges safe when adjudicating corruption cases?	100
79	Do citizens have equal access to the justice system?	57

Indicator and sub-Indicator Details

Is there an appeals mechanism for challenging criminal judgments?

74a: In law, there is a general right of appeal.

Score:

YES

Comments:

References: National Constitution, Articles 18 (the right to fair trial) and 117 (About original and appeal competence)

Internal Rules for each "fuero" (civil and commercial; administrative, criminal)

74b: In practice, appeals are resolved within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

Comments: Slowness is a problem that affects the whole judicial system, including appeals. Sometimes the problem is related to lack of resources, and sometimes to the absence of political will to solve judicial cases.

References: [ LINK ] www.ceppas.org/cipce

"Information & Justice" www.unidosjusticia.org.ar/

74c: In practice, citizens can use the appeals mechanism at a reasonable cost.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Gastón Rosenberg - professor at University of Buenos Aires, September 2007 University of Buenos Aires

In practice, do judgments in the criminal system follow written law?

75: In practice, do judgments in the criminal system follow written law?

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Interview with Nicolás Dassen, expert on Anti-corruption affairs. Poder Ciudadano Foundation advisor. Telephone interview, Aug. 15, 2007

In practice, are judicial decisions enforced by the state?

76: In practice, are judicial decisions enforced by the state?

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Interview with Nicolás Dassen, expert on Anti-corruption affairs. Poder Ciudadano Foundation advisor. Telephone interview, Aug. 15, 2007

Is the judiciary able to act independently?

77a: In law, the independence of the judiciary is guaranteed.

Score:

YES

Comments:

References: National Constitution www.infoleg.gov.ar

77b: In practice, national-level judges are protected from political interference.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: [ LINK ]

77c: In law, there is a transparent and objective system for distributing cases to national-level judges.

Score:

YES

Comments: Cases are distributed randomly.

References: Rules from each "fuero" (Acordada 980/99; Acordada 7/94; and others)

77d: In law, national-level judges are protected from removal without relevant justification.

Score:

YES

Comments: National-level judges are protected from removal without relevant justification by the constitution articles mentioned. The removal may happen only if judges haven´t carried out their resposanbilities, or if they have committed a crime.

References: National Constitution, Articles 110 and 115 www.infoleg.gov.ar

Are judges safe when adjudicating corruption cases?

78a: In practice, in the last year, no judges have been physically harmed because of adjudicating corruption cases.

Score:

YES

Comments: No cases were found.

References: Gastón Rosenberg - professor at University of Buenos Aires, September 2007 University of Buenos Aires

78b: In practice, in the last year, no judges have been killed because of adjudicating corruption cases.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no documented cases of judges being killed related to their involvement in a corruption case during the study period. YES is a positive score. NO: A NO score is earned if there were any documented cases where a judge was killed because of his/her participation in a corruption trial. The relationship between a mysterious death and a judge\'s involvement in a case may not be clear, however the burden of proof here is low. If it is a reasonable assumption that a judge was killed in relation to his or her work on corruption issues, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments: No cases were found.

References: Gastón Rosenberg - professor at University of Buenos Aires, September 2007 University of Buenos Aires

Do citizens have equal access to the justice system?

79a: In practice, judicial decisions are not affected by racial or ethnic bias.

Score:

100

Comments: Some groups may be discriminated against.

References: Interview with Nicolás Dassen, expert on Anti-corruption affairs. Poder Ciudadano Foundation advisor. Telephone interview, Aug. 15, 2007

79b: In practice, women have full access to the judicial system.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Acceso a la Justicia como garantía de igualdad, Haydée Birgin y Beatriz Kohen (has compiled different documents for this publication), ed Biblos, 2006.

Interview with Nicolás Dassen, expert on Anti-corruption affairs. Poder Ciudadano Foundation advisor. Telephone interview, Aug. 15, 2007

79c: In law, the state provides legal counsel for defendants in criminal cases who cannot afford it.

Score:

YES

Comments:

References: National Constitution, article 120 Public Ministry organic Law (Law 24946) www.infoleg.gov.ar www.mpf.gov.ar

79d: In practice, the state provides adequate legal counsel for defendants in criminal cases who cannot afford it.

Score:

100

Comments: Sometimes the lack of resurces (human, financial, organizational) make the provision of adequate legal counsel difficult.

References: Gastón Rosenberg - professor at University of Buenos Aires, September 2007 University of Buenos Aires

79e: In practice, citizens earning the median yearly income can afford to bring a legal suit.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Gastón Rosenberg - professor at University of Buenos Aires, September 2007 University of Buenos Aires

79f: In practice, a typical small retail business can afford to bring a legal suit.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Gastón Rosenberg - professor at University of Buenos Aires, September 2007 University of Buenos Aires

79g: In practice, all citizens have access to a court of law, regardless of geographic location.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Interview with Nicolás Dassen, expert on Anti-corruption affairs. Poder Ciudadano Foundation advisor. Telephone interview, Aug. 15, 2007