Romanian Supreme Council of Magistracy adopts limits on judges' case loads

The judges' section of the Consiliul Superior al Magistraturii introduced a mechanism to align court workloads with real staffing levels, aiming to prevent overload and delays. Reference caps of 288, 192 and 119 cases per year are defined for judges at courts of first instance, tribunals and courts of appeal respectively, but they act only as guides for overall court capacity. An automated daily intake limit will be computed, and any cases beyond that limit will be logged in a special register and reassigned chronologically when space becomes available.

Random assignment of cases to panels remains in force, with exceptions for priority matters and certain excluded categories, which are handled immediately. In extraordinary circumstances, the presiding judge may prioritize a registered case to protect fundamental rights or avoid serious harm. The rollout will be phased, with interim capacity calculations gradually moving toward the final reference values.