20 Percent of Judge Slots in Russia Now Vacant, Supreme Court Statistics Show

Paul Goble
    Staunton, Jan. 31 – Russia faces a large and growing shortage of judges, the result of low salaries, bureaucratic screening, and burnout, officials in the Judicial Department of the Supreme Court of Russia say. As a result, 6500 judicial positions are currently unfilled – or nearly one in five.
    Given that the Putin regime uses the courts to give its repressive moves the appearance of legality, that puts a strain on the judicial system, making it more difficult to hold trials in a timely fashion  and encouraging judges to do what they can to shorten proceedings in anyone case so they can get on to others.
    The situation appears especially dire in the North Caucasus (akcent.site/novosti/38678) where the courts are being asked to make judgments about the regime’s moves against ethnic and religious movements; and unless the shortages are overcome, the Putin regime may find itself forced to use more extra-judicial means to achieve its ends.