Carlos Hugo Preciado, a member of the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) from the progressive bloc, has openly criticized nine colleagues for putting the institution at the service of Minister Félix Bolaños. In a written statement, Preciado warns that the CGPJ risks becoming an arm of the government if it continues down this path.
Preciado’s letter, obtained by ABC, is an unusually direct challenge within Spain’s highest judicial body. He accuses his peers of abandoning their duty to scrutinize the executive, especially the Ministry of Justice, and protecting it at the judiciary’s expense. “Collaboration is impressive in a state governed by law,” Preciado writes, “but it must not be confused with adherence, submission, or the abandonment of our own critical responsibilities.”
The opening of the judicial year on September 10, 2026, was attended by King Felipe VI and Minister Félix Bolaños. Their presence gave the event added political weight.
The dispute began with a statement from nine progressive council members criticizing CGPJ president Isabel Perelló after her comments at the Opening of the Judicial Year. They urged her not to blame the Ministry for the judiciary’s problems. Preciado, but, defends Perelló’s right to speak about the system’s shortcomings, arguing that silencing criticism distorts the meaning of institutional loyalty.
He goes further, accusing his colleagues of shielding the Ministry of Justice by playing down operational problems and resource shortages caused by new efficiency laws. For Preciado, this is not progressivism but “political-administrative corporatism” that serves the Ministry rather than the judiciary or the public.
Preciado’s criticism extends beyond the current dispute. He warns that the CGPJ should not become “territory colonized by political parties,” and says replacing old bloc politics with new forms of executive dependence would be a serious mistake. He points to the risk of “automatic adoption of the ministerial narrative.” Cooperation with the government is necessary, he says, but “subordination is never acceptable.”
Information from official reports, Isabel Perelló, president of the CGPJ and the Supreme Court, publicly defended judicial independence at the 2026 judicial year opening, calling accusations of politically motivated rulings 'extremely serious.' The statement was seen as a direct response to political attacks on the judiciary. Several Spanish national media outlets noted that it sparked a rare internal split within the CGPJ.
He also points to a contradiction: his colleagues cite their progressive identity as a source of authority, yet support government-led reforms while ignoring the practical problems those reforms create in the courts. For Preciado, that undermines the institution’s autonomy and the principle of judicial independence.
At the center of the dispute is a basic question: who does the CGPJ serve? Preciado argues that the Council belongs to no party or government, and that a ministry should not dictate its actions from outside. He calls for the Council to move past ideological blocs and show the same institutional loyalty to the presidency that it expects from others.
This episode highlights the fragility of judicial independence in Spain, as public trust in institutions is already shaky. Preciado’s intervention is a reminder that defending autonomy matters most when it is uncomfortable. If the CGPJ cannot protect its own space from political interference, it risks losing credibility as a guardian of justice. The current standoff goes beyond an internal dispute: it signals that the line between government and judiciary is shifting, not necessarily in favor of democratic checks and balances.
