New justices of the peace for Arroba de los Montes and Villar del Pozo

The Governing Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Castilla-La Mancha has agreed upon the appointment of the justices of the peace for two municipalities in the province of Ciudad Real. The agreement, dated October 19, 2026, is published by edict in the Official Gazette of the Province of Ciudad Real number 208, dated October 28, 2026, within the section for the administration of justice. The text is signed by the Government Secretary of the high court, Sigfrido Mangas Morales, and is listed as announcement number 3478.

Three appointments in two municipalities

The resolution details the assigned positions, indicating the municipality and the national identity document number of each appointee, which appears partially hidden:

• Gema Sacramento Martín González (D.N.I. ****7331), titular justice of the peace of Arroba de los Montes.
• Noelia Tercero Fernández (D.N.I. ****4915), titular justice of the peace of Villar del Pozo.
• Francisco Partida Delgado (D.N.I. ****5953), substitute justice of the peace of Villar del Pozo.

The edict specifies that the agreements are adopted for “the municipalities of the province of Ciudad Real and the positions specified,” such that the territorial scope of each designation is limited to the corresponding municipal district.

Regulatory basis and deciding body

The Governing Chamber acts in Commission and bases its decision on Article 20 of Regulation 3/1995, of June 7, and on Articles 101.2 and 101.4 of the Organic Law of the Judiciary. The agreement is also adopted in compliance with the provisions of the Plenary of the General Council of the Judiciary in its agreement of December 1, 1995.

Justices of the peace are the officials who handle the first judicial instance in municipalities where there is no court of first instance and instruction, and their designation corresponds to the Governing Chamber of the respective High Court of Justice upon the proposal of the city council, according to the distribution of competencies established by organic law.

Assumption of office and four-year mandate

The published text sets two specific deadlines for the appointees:

• They must assume office within twenty calendar days following the date of publication of the appointment in the Official Gazette of the Province.
• The assumption of office requires an oath or promise before the President of the Court of First Instance of the corresponding judicial district.
• The mandate has a duration of four years, computed from the date of publication of the appointment in the provincial gazette.

However, the appointed person shall not be obliged to take an oath or promise if they have already done so previously for the same position, as stated in the edict itself.

Administrative appeal within a period of one month

An administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) may be filed against the appointment agreement within one month from the day following the notification or publication of the edict. The appeal must be addressed to the Permanent Commission of the General Council of the Judiciary, subject to the grounds and formalities established by Law 39/2015, of October 1, on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations.

The document, which consists of 45 pages, is electronically signed and its authenticity can be verified using the secure verification code ZravdfzTUc0308kpXiQc on the corporate electronic office of the Provincial Council. The edict is dated in Albacete on October 23, 2026.

The appointment guarantees the continuity of the local judicial service in two small municipalities of the province, where the justice of the peace assumes functions of the civil registry, summons, and preliminary proceedings. Filling the substitute position in Villar del Pozo also prevents absences or incapacities of the holder from leaving the court without service, a situation that in sparsely populated towns can last for weeks.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Ciudad Real, number 208, of October 28, 2026, administration of justice, p. 10156 (official reference: announcement number 3478, CVE ZravdfzTUc0308kpXiQc).