Diputación rejects the recusal of three members of the Public Works tribunal

The President of the Provincial Council of Seville has dismissed the challenge (recusal) filed by Ms. María del Pilar Mellado Flores, an admitted applicant, against three members of the selection body for the process to fill two positions for Public Works Technical Engineer (OEP 2024), and has denied the precautionary suspension of the selection process. The decision is adopted by Resolution No. 6958/2026, of September 29, authorized by the Public Employee Area, and is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Seville (BOP) No. 194, of Tuesday, October 6, 2026, with official reference BOP-SE-2026-194002.

The recusal incident and its processing

The recusal was filed under Article 23 of Law 40/2015, of October 1, on the Legal Regime of the Public Sector, which regulates the grounds for abstention, and was processed according to the procedure in Article 24 of the same regulation. The interested party alleged the existence of manifest enmity with the three members of the tribunal.

The milestones of the file were as follows:

• September 20, 2026: entry into the Corporation’s registry of the recusal document, which also requested the precautionary suspension of the first exercise.
• September 21, 2026: the Personnel Service of the Public Employee Area forwards the document to the challenged members.
• September 22, 2026: statements are received from the three members, who deny the occurrence of the alleged cause.
• September 25, 2026: the Personnel Service issues a report and the first exercise is scheduled for 09:00 hours at the E.U.I.T.A. building.

Those affected by the recusal were Mr. Jaime Morell Sastre, as President, Mr. Manuel Enrique Delgado Romero, as 1st Member, and Mr. Juan Martínez Muñoz, as 2nd Member, appointed by Resolutions No. 5773/2026, of August 17, and No. 6579/2026, published in BOP No. 182, of September 18, 2026.

The arguments of the challenged members and the legal assessment

The Personnel Service report states that Mr. Jaime Morell Sastre maintained that, as head of the Sub-directorate of the Supramunicipal Public Services Area, he is not the direct hierarchical superior of the challenger, whose direct dependency corresponds to the Environment Service. He added that the invoked enmity is derived from discrepancies over decisions adopted in the exercise of his powers and that none of them have been rectified or annulled through administrative or judicial channels. The other two members likewise denied the alleged circumstances.

After examining the documentation and the allegations, the report concludes that there is no evidence of manifest enmity or any other cause for abstention under Article 23 of Law 40/2015. The invoked circumstances are limited to the framework of labor or professional relations derived from the performance of their duties, and a personal relationship of sufficient entity to compromise the impartiality of the selection body cannot be inferred.

Background of the selection process

The call for applications stems from the 2024 Public Employment Offer, approved by Resolution No. 6037/2024, of October 3, published in the BOP No. 199, of October 11, 2024, which included two positions for Public Works Technical Engineer within the civil service staff. The specific rules were approved by Resolution No. 1148/2026, of February 27, and the announcement of the call was published in the BOE No. 114, of May 11, 2026, with an application period from May 12 to May 26.

The provisional list of admitted and excluded applicants was approved by Resolution No. 4413/2026, of June 26, published in the BOP No. 135, of July 15, 2026, with a period of ten business days for corrections.

Resolution, appeals, and effects

The agreement provides, first, to resolve the challenge by maintaining the appointment of the three members of the selection body; second, to deny the requested suspension as there is no legal cause determining their removal; and third, to publish the resolution in the Official Provincial Gazette and on the Corporation’s Electronic Office. The authority to resolve corresponds to the President of the Provincial Council as the head of all personnel, pursuant to Article 24.3 of Law 40/2015 and by virtue of the powers in Article 34 of Law 7/1985, of April 2, regulating the Bases of the Local Regime. The announcement is signed by the Secretary General, Fernando Fernández-Figueroa Guerrero, by delegation (Resolution 1221/2026, of March 3).

Against this resolution, which exhausts administrative remedies, the following may be filed:

• An optional appeal for reversal (recurso de reposición) before the same body, within one month from the day following publication (Articles 123 and 124 of Law 39/2015).
• A contentious-administrative appeal before the Contentious-Administrative Section of the Court of First Instance of Seville, within two months (Article 46 of Law 29/1998, of July 13).

The decision clears the way for the continuity of the selection process for two Public Works Technical Engineer positions and confirms the composition of the tribunal, a matter of direct interest to the applicants and to the Provincial Council staff, who see the processing of a call included in their 2024 public employment offer guaranteed.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Seville, no. 194, of October 6, 2026, Local Administration, page 15 (official reference: BOP-SE-2026-194002).