The Ombudsman expects a criminal case involving domestic violence and serious bodily injury to be handled more expeditiously.
Violation: 23. člen Ustave RS - Pravica do sodnega varstva; 24. člen ZVarCP - Naupravičeno zavlačevanje postopka
Summary
In November 2025, the petitioner drew the attention of the Ombudsman to the excessive length of a criminal case concerning the offences of serious bodily injury and domestic violence, which had been pending before the District Court in Nova Gorica since 2021. As the victim in the case, she explained that the prolonged duration was causing her considerable distress. After obtaining an explanation from the court, the Ombudsman found the complaint to be well-founded and expressed the expectation that the court would deal with the case more expeditiously from that point onwards.Details
The petitioner contacted the Human Rights Ombudsman of the Republic of Slovenia regarding the alleged undue delay in criminal proceedings before the District Court in Nova Gorica (Case No. II K 1855/2021). The defendant was charged with aggravated bodily injury under Article 123(1) of the Criminal Code (KZ-1) and domestic violence under Article 191(1) of the Criminal Code.
In July 2025, the petitioner lodged a supervisory complaint concerning the progress of the case. In its response, the court acknowledged that a review of the case file had revealed a delay in proceedings that should have been treated as a priority. The presiding judge explained that the delay had resulted from an increased workload and a higher number of urgent detention cases during the relevant period. The court stated that the case should be heard and concluded as soon as possible, indicating that this was expected to be completed by the end of 2025 or within four months of September 2025. As no hearings had yet taken place when she received the court's reply, the petitioner informed the Ombudsman of her doubts that the case would be concluded within the announced timeframe.
In response to the Ombudsman's enquiry, the court stated that the first main hearing had been held in December 2025 and that the next hearing had been scheduled for February 2026. Due to the outstanding evidentiary motions that still had to be decided, the court stated that it was not possible to specify a more precise conclusion date for the case. It also emphasised that the main hearing was already underway.
Based on the information received, the Ombudsman concluded that the complaint was well-founded. Given the nature of the alleged criminal offences and the fact that the case had been pending since 2021, the Ombudsman considered that it warranted more expeditious handling. He therefore expected the court to deal with the case promptly and efficiently from that point onwards.
The ombudsman also informed the petitioner that she could avail herself again of the legal remedies provided under the Act on the Protection of the Right to a Trial without Undue Delay should the circumstances require it, and that she could contact the ombudsman again if further delays occurred.
Case No. 15.2-26/2025
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