'Cuadernos': Court doubles weekly hearings to speed up corruption trial
Corruption notebooks trial will have hearings on Tuesday and Thursday each week, rules TOF7; Decision comes after intervention by Federal Cassation Court.
The high-profile ‘Cuadernos de las Coimas’ corruption notebooks corruption trial will now hold two hearings per week, after the Federal Criminal Cassation Court intervened to speed up proceedings that have been criticised for their slow pace.
Federal Oral Court No. 7 (TOF 7), which is conducting the trial, confirmed that in addition to its usual Thursday session, hearings will also take place every Tuesday.
The decision follows a resolution issued by the Cassation Court instructing TOF 7 to adopt measures to ensure greater “efficacy, efficiency and immediacy” in the process. The intervening judges – Daniel Petrone, Ángela Ledesma, Gustavo Hornos, Mariano Borinsky and Carlos Mahiques – will meet with the trial judges on November 18 to coordinate the new schedule.
The case, one of the largest in Argentina’s judicial history, involves former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and 86 other defendants, including former government officials and prominent businesspeople.
They are accused of participating in a vast bribery network linked to public works contracts between 2003 and 2015 and face potential prison terms of up to 10 years.
Prosecutors allege 540 instances of illicit payments, with Fernández de Kirchner accused of leading the scheme while serving as head of state.
Also in the dock are several former officials, including former Federal Planning minister Julio De Vido, former Public Works secretary José López, former Public Works official Roberto Baratta; former Transport secretaries Juan Pablo Schiavi and Ricardo Jaime; and about 50 businesspeople.
Hearings take place at the Palace of Justice in Buenos Aires, where judges, prosecutors and some defendants attend in person while others join via video link. Each session involves more than 200 participants, including lawyers, witnesses and court personnel.
The Cassation Court’s intervention follows growing concern that the current once-weekly, mixed-mode format could extend the trial for many years. In a previous warning, the court said such delays “limit the dynamism inherent to an oral public trial,” risking procedural inefficiency.
TOF 7 acknowledged that it is under “operational strain,” citing 29 new cases filed in recent months, and said it had asked to be temporarily excluded from new case assignments – a request rejected by higher courts. Despite this, the judges agreed to double the number of weekly hearings.
Judicial authorities are also considering holding future sessions at Comodoro Py’s AMIA courtroom or a newly equipped space to accommodate the trial’s large logistical demands. At present, defendants are joining by videoconference software, given the quantity of the accused.
Prosecutor Fabiana León described the proceedings as “the longest corruption investigation in Argentina’s history, comparable to only a few worldwide.”
– TIMES/NA