Drowning in case files and insecurity / BIRN: Albanian courts in misery, working in dilapidated buildings! Calls for solutions fall on deaf ears

The new judicial map from three years ago has worsened the situation in several courts in the country, which carry out their work in dilapidated buildings flooded with court files, while requests for solutions fall on deaf ears.

On Monday morning, the lobby of the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction in Tirana is overcrowded with people waiting for court proceedings. Defendants, family members and lawyers first pass through security screening, then pack into the waiting room from which the start of hearings is announced.

Built in 1957 to serve as a police precinct, the old three-story building of the Court of Appeal extended its jurisdiction across all of Albania after the approval of the new judicial map of 2023.

But instead of resolving backlogged cases, the situation at the Court of Appeal is today on the verge of impossibility due to the lack of premises for the doubled staff and case files gathered from the whole country.

The narrow corridors of this court have already turned into labyrinths filled with case files, which can be found stacked in cupboards, on shelves and on chairs. The air reeks of mold and dampness.

Due to the lack of space, all deliberation rooms where judges withdraw to discuss and make decisions have been turned into ‘temporary archives’ for cases awaiting trial. Over the past three years, the stock of case files has grown from 33,000 to 48,000.

The need for space has forced the administration to find temporary solutions; for example, partitioning a courtroom with cardboard panels to create a windowless space as a deliberation room. But a new problem has now emerged.

“When we enter the deliberation room, we take the parties out of the courtroom so they do not hear what we discuss,” says a judge on condition of anonymity.

“There is no security measure at all. No matter how good a judge you are, you cannot work here. They should stay here with us to understand,” she added.

The lack of space and the degradation of buildings is not an isolated problem only for the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction. According to data that BIRN obtained through right-to-information requests and conversations with the heads of several courts, the lack of premises has become an obstacle to performing their work in other courts throughout the country.

According to them, this is not only an infrastructure problem, but a matter of the administration of justice, improving the quality of judicial services and respecting the standards of an efficient and safe system at the service of citizens.

Faced with this emergency situation, the government offers promises as a solution.

Prime Minister Edi Rama presented on February 12 a program for the international competition for the Justice Center – a complex for the justice system that, even according to the most optimistic forecasts, is expected to be completed in 2031.

The High Judicial Council (KLGJ) and the Ministry of Justice had not responded to BIRN’s questions by the publication of this article.

Requests fall on deaf ears

The corridors of the Court of Appeal are blocked by shelves filled with case files

BIRN learned that the miserable conditions at the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction are repeated almost identically at the Administrative Court of Appeal in Tirana, the Tirana Court, as well as courts in several districts.

The Administrative Court of Appeal currently has over 24,000 cases under adjudication, of which about 17,000 are carried over from previous years. To reduce the case file backlog, 25 legal assistants have recently been hired, but there is no space to accommodate them.

The High Judicial Council rejected in July of this year a lease contract of 11,000 euros per month between the Administrative Court of Appeal and the company “Gener 2” for renting a space to accommodate case files and legal assistants.

After this decision, the Administrative Court of Appeal again submitted a request to the High Judicial Council, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, seeking a solution to put an end to the case file backlog.

The Administrative Court of Appeal told BIRN that the only response had come from the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, which indicated that it did not have free and suitable premises for this purpose.

Left without a solution, the Administrative Court of Appeal has sought the support of the European Union Delegation in Tirana, considering the situation unacceptable. It also asked that the High Judicial Council and the responsible government structures be urged to act.

The First Instance Court in Tirana is also in the same conditions. The repeated and ongoing requests for additional premises addressed to the High Judicial Council have not produced a solution.

Likewise, the Ministry of Justice has been asked to make available the building of the Probation Service, which is located near the building of the Criminal Chamber. Meetings have also been held with diplomats from a partner country and with a group of lawmakers from the committee on citizens’ initiatives, but without a concrete result.

The repeated requests of the courts of Lezha, Fier and Saranda have also remained unresolved.

The head of the Lezha Court, Lirim Bulica, told BIRN that their building has only three proper courtrooms, while two others have been improvised in the basement and have only an audio system. He adds that judges’ offices have minimal surface area, while those of the administrative staff are in miserable conditions.

“The basements served as archives, but after a courtroom was set up in the basement, the case files were transferred to the premises of the Kurbin Court. But even those premises will soon be exhausted,” says Bulica.

He stresses that he had sought solutions from the High Judicial Council and the Ministry of Justice, but without any result. Moreover, Bulica says that despite his requests, the Ministry of Justice informed him that it wanted two offices in Kurbin, which would worsen the situation.

The head of the Fier Court, Noel Veizi, also told BIRN that there is an urgent need for a building. His requests to move to the premises of the former UFO university, a building confiscated by the state, have been refused.

The head of the Saranda Court, Entiljano Spahiu, also said that the building’s current capacities are insufficient for the normal functioning of the court and for providing an adequate service to the public.

“A particular problem is the lack of dedicated premises for the public and lawyers. The building does not have waiting areas or places to stay for citizens who appear for court hearings or to receive administrative services,” said Spahiu.

Unlike other courts, the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction received a response from the Council of Ministers, which in March 2025 transferred to it the building of the Large Taxpayers Directorate.

However, there is a problem: the building is unusable due to the damage caused by the 2019 earthquake and is undergoing reconstruction, which is expected to be completed next year.

Such delays can be dangerous for the fate of thousands of case files.

“The accumulation of case files, in addition to difficulties in managing them, increases the risk of damage to documentation and affects the efficiency of handling cases. Furthermore, the circumstances also create security problems, including the risk of fire and obstruction of movement within the institution’s premises,” the Court of Appeal said in a written response.

Security conditions ‘at zero level’

Police escort defendants into the Court of Appeal

The problems with premises also leave the question of security open.

On October 16 last year, Appeal Court judge Astrit Kalaja was shot dead in the courtroom – an unprecedented event that was accompanied by shock and concerns over the security of the judicial system.

A year later, the lack of special passageways for detainees at the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction means that the same corridors are used by them, judges and administrative staff.

Security concerns are also raised at the Fier and Saranda courts.

“There is no room in the corridor, and judges, citizens and detainees pass through together. In most cases, when detainees who pose a high social risk have to pass, citizens are taken outside, because the security elements leave much to be desired due to the building’s premises,” the head of the Fier Court, Noel Veizi, told BIRN.

“Security conditions are at zero level. Not without reason, two attempted murders have been carried out inside the court premises, one targeting a female judge,” he added.

The head of the Saranda Court, Entiljano Spahiu, also complained about the security conditions.

“Its positioning directly exposes the court to the road and public space, while the existing configuration does not allow the creation of the necessary security perimeters and zones,” said Spahiu.

“Likewise, the necessary space is lacking at the entrance for the installation and operation of security control equipment, including the scanner,” he concluded.

Judges’ case files at the Court of Appeal of General Jurisdiction