Former judge Lauracelis Roques criticized the judicial reform approved by Puerto Rico’s Legislative Assembly, which shifts administrative functions from Supreme Court Chief Justice Maite Oronoz Rodríguez to the full court and eliminates the municipal judge category, converting those 85 positions into superior court judgeships. She spoke on Normando en la Mañana. Roques called the process flawed: "This is a law that was promoted by a group of people who do not know how the judiciary works... Any branch of government has to improve, including the Judicial Branch, but they did not know how to do it."
Basically, she is a chief justice in name,
On the transfer of powers, she said a constitutional issue is at stake: Puerto Rico’s Constitution provides that the chief justice administers the Judicial Branch while the full court holds the power to regulate. Functions historically exercised by the chief justice, such as those tied to administrative judges and selecting the director of the Office of Court Administration, will now depend on the full court delegating them.
"Basically, she is a chief justice in name," Roques said. Her greatest concern is the municipal judge category, which she compared to an emergency room: municipal judges handle protection orders, probable cause for arrest determinations, mental health matters under Law 408 and neighbor disputes. She said there was no transition period or phased plan, no analysis of the annual cost of a superior judge, and that the law does not expressly address what happens to municipal courtroom facilities.
Asked whether the reform stemmed from legislative discontent over the chief justice’s handling of administrative appointments, she said "It could be. I don’t doubt it," but preferred to stay "idealistic." She stressed separation of powers.