Resumen de Collegiality of the court in civil proceedings and the right to a court
The right to a court is a fundamental right, guaranteeing the preservation of all other fundamental rights and the rights derived from them. There is no standard for the collegiality of the court in hearing cases, the national legislature is free to do so, but it can’t infringe the principle of fair civil procedure. A collegiate composition of the court (three judges, but also with jurors) has many advantages and few disadvantages, but this does not mean that every case must be heard in both instances by courts adjudicating in collegiate panels. This problem is particularly important in appeal proceedings, since any errors made by the court of first instance can be corrected by examining ordinary appeals. Thus, while in civil proceedings at first instance the collegiality of the composition of the court should be the exception, since it’s only in certain categories of cases that such a composition actually contributes to a more correct and equitable decision, in the case of a court of appeal the collegiate composition should be the rule and a derogation from it should be the exception. The legislator shouldn’t narrow down the number of categories of cases that should be considered in appeal proceedings in a collegiate panel in favour of a singlejudge panel. On the contrary, deviations from the collegiate bench should be as narrow as possible, they should apply to categories of cases in which procedural economy does not adversely affect the issuance of a correct ruling.
