Lay Participation in Spain: The Jury System

Abstract

Although the judicial administration in Spain is erected on the basis of the professional judge, Spanish law also provides for a degree of lay participation through three institutions: the office of Justice of the Peace, the right of "popular action" and what is basically the jury system, which will form the subject of this article. The jury system in Spain is stipulated in the Spanish Constitution and is currently regulated by the Organic Law of May 1995, but it is not the first time that trial by jury has existed in Spanish criminal proceedings.

This article examines some historical precedents of the various Spanish jury systems as well as the constitutional and legal regulation of the present system. A number of elements of Spanish law and the jury system are subsequently analyzed, and concluding remarks are offered.

Keywords: lay participation, administration of Justice, Spain, jury system