Video 1

Role and History

Justice of the Peace courts began as a way to resolve everyday disputes in communities far from major cities, reducing the need for residents to travel to urban centers.

Historically, some justices of the peace were laypeople without legal training. Today, the role is professionalized: these judges are lawyers who meet the legal requirements for judicial office. They are part of Mendoza’s provincial judiciary and exercise a genuine judicial function. They manage proceedings, hold hearings, assess evidence, issue decisions and judgments, and are subject to the review mechanisms established by law.

Their authority is defined by law; the title does not mean their decisions are informal or less legally significant. They do not perform civil marriages, which are handled by the civil registry.

Civil Jurisdiction

The distinction between a Justice of the Peace and a civil judge is primarily a matter of jurisdiction—the cases each is legally authorized to hear. Mendoza’s civil, commercial, and tax procedural code allocates cases between the two.

Justice of the Peace courts may hear:

• Cases assigned by subject matter, regardless of claim value: These include many disputes arising from leases, such as unpaid rent and certain eviction proceedings.
• Monitoring or enforcement proceedings: These can involve documents the law permits to be enforced, such as promissory notes, checks, mortgages, or pledges. A judge must still check the legal requirements and ensure the defendant has an opportunity to defend themselves; presenting a document does not automatically guarantee collection.
• Consumer disputes: A Justice of the Peace may hear these up to a specified monetary limit. Claims above the limit go to civil courts.
• Civil-liability claims: For example, a claim for damage caused by a traffic accident may go to a Justice of the Peace or a civil court depending on the amount and other circumstances.
• Small-claims proceedings: These can address qualifying everyday disputes, such as issues involving a shared wall, water damage, or a tree planted too close to a boundary.

For matters whose jurisdiction depends on the amount claimed, Mendoza uses a periodically updated unit called the jus. The speaker gives an approximate value of 630,000 pesos per jus as of October 2026 and says that claims up to 20 jus fall within the Justice of the Peace’s jurisdiction, while claims from 20 jus onward go to civil court. The threshold can change as the value of the jus is updated.

A case’s relative simplicity or low monetary value does not make it unimportant. Justice of the Peace courts must respect the same core guarantees, including the right to a defense, impartiality, and reasoned decisions.

Additional Jurisdictions in Some Locations

Some departmental Justice of the Peace courts retain limited family-law powers where there is no departmental family court. The speaker names Santa Rosa, Las Catitas, and La Paz as examples. This jurisdiction is restricted to matters specified by the procedural rules and is not equivalent to the full jurisdiction of a family court.

In certain locations, including the speaker’s court in San Carlos, a Justice of the Peace also has contraventional jurisdiction.

Contraventional Jurisdiction

Contraventions are provincial offenses set out in Mendoza’s Contravention Code, Law 9099. They are distinct from crimes, which are governed by the national Penal Code and other national laws.

Contraventions may concern conduct affecting safety, public order, or social coexistence. The speaker gives driving with certain blood-alcohol levels as an example. Depending on the offense and circumstances, sanctions may include a fine, community service, or arrest.

A judge does not impose a sanction automatically just because someone has been reported. The judge must determine whether the conduct is defined as an offense, whether sufficient evidence exists, and whether legal guarantees were respected. The accused person must be told what conduct is alleged, be able to present a defense and evidence, and receive a reasoned decision.

The speaker highlights the presumption of innocence and the principle of legality: no one may be sanctioned for conduct that was not previously defined as an offense by law.

Contraventional proceedings concern the State’s power to impose sanctions and therefore differ from ordinary civil disputes. The speaker says that under Law 9099’s procedure, the Public Prosecutor’s Office does not intervene as it does in criminal proceedings.

The purpose is not merely punitive. These courts also help apply rules that protect safety and social coexistence, while ensuring that the State exercises its sanctioning power within legal limits.

How the Courts Operate

Court work is carried out by a team that can include the judge, court officials, secretariat staff, and other employees who manage files, notifications, public service, and proceedings. Courts may use a traditional structure or an associated judicial management model in which several courts share administrative functions.

A case can involve written submissions, court orders, notifications, hearings, witness testimony, document review, and expert input. The judge issues a decision once the matter is ready.

Some disputes can be resolved through agreement. Where the law allows, conciliation and other appropriate dispute-resolution methods may produce a quicker, mutually acceptable outcome.

Accordingly, a court’s work includes more than issuing judgments. It also involves organizing proceedings, protecting the right to a defense, facilitating lawful agreements, and ensuring decisions can be carried out.

Access to Justice and Local Presence

Departmental courts provide a judicial body closer to residents who live far from urban centers. The speaker cites the Uco Valley courts in La Consulta/San Carlos, Tunuyán, and Tupungato.

Local proximity must not compromise judicial independence or impartiality. Instead, courts should combine independence with respectful treatment and clear explanations.

The speaker concludes that accessible justice should be not only geographically close, but also timely, understandable, well-founded, and humane.

Speakers and Sources

• Leandro Passerini — the sole speaker, introduced as a lawyer and magistrate/contraventional Justice of the Peace in San Carlos.
• Legal authorities cited by the speaker: Mendoza’s civil, commercial, and tax procedural code; Mendoza’s Family Procedural Code; the Provincial Contravention Code (Law 9099); and resolutions of the Mendoza Supreme Court of Justice that update the value of the jus.