According to the 2023 activity report of the Superior Council of the Judiciary (CSM), three fines, one suspension with an additional penalty of transfer, one registered warning and one unregistered warning were applied.

Regarding disciplinary proceedings, the CSM registered a reduction in pending cases, with nine proceedings in 2023 that were carried over from the previous year, compared to the 16 carried over from 2021 to 2022 and the more than 30 carried over in previous years. The reduction in pending cases is also evident in the cases carried over to 2024, which number only four. In 2023, 11 proceedings were initiated and 16 were judged.

Seven of the disciplinary proceedings result from inquiry proceedings opened in 2023. There were six inquiries carried over from 2022 and nine instituted in 2023. Four were summarily archived.

Among the 37 disciplinary actions in 2023, 19 less than in 2022, there are also 17 investigation proceedings instituted.

The CSM also carried out 191 inspections in 2023, with 189 inspections with approved classifications and 13 complaints about the classifications obtained, still less than the 31 complaints in 2022.

In the classifications attributed to the inspected judges, the maximum classification of 'Very Good' was attributed to 86 magistrates, 'Good with Distinction' to 24, less than the 40 in 2022, and 'Good' to 36, more than the 14 in 2022. There were also more judges classified as 'Sufficient', a total of 15, up from six in 2022, but none as 'Mediocre'.

Even so, there was a percentage increase in 2023 of judges with lower classifications compared to the previous year.

In 2023, there were also seven appeals to the Supreme Court of Justice of CSM deliberations, including one regarding classification in the evaluation and another regarding disciplinary matters.

According to the statistical data for 2023, the CSM received 15 requests for procedural acceleration, of which only three were granted, with the Council recalling that the rejections always happen when "it is understood that the process is being processed within the legal deadlines or that, if it is not, the request lacks sufficient grounds because the delay is not attributable to the court".

In its direct relationship with citizens, the CSM registered 606 interpellations last year, almost half for "disagreement with the decision issued by the court", with the Council recalling that it is not its competence to investigate judicial decisions, a role that falls to the higher courts, through appeals.

"Another part has to do with alleged delays in judicial processes and the rest with other matters, such as the state of prisons or acts of employees and/or judges. The complaints from citizens gave rise to three summary investigations", the report states.

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