City Bar Statement Expressing Concern over the Criminalization of Judges in Mexico

In a new statement, the New York City Bar Association expressed deep concern about the decision by Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office to open criminal investigations against federal judges for their rulings in cases related to the new judicial reform process in the country. These actions “directly threaten the judiciary’s independence and exacerbate a troubling trend in the relationship between the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches in Mexico,” as well as contradict international standards on judicial independence, the statement says. 

In February, the Attorney General’s Office (FGR, for its name in Spanish) opened criminal investigations against two judges, Sergio Santamaría Chamú and María Gabriela Ruiz Márquez. This action followed a ruling by the Superior Chamber of the Electoral Tribunal that both judges had violated the Constitution and exceeded their jurisdiction in two January 2025 decisions in which they granted injunctions that halted implementation of parts of Mexico’s new judicial reform proceedings.

Dozens of lawyers and organizations including Mexico’s Federal Public Defender’s Office have issued statements condemning the criminal prosecution of federal judges who granted injunctions against the judicial reform. The Public Defender’s Office noted that these actions are especially concerning “due to the implicit warning to other judicial officials that their rulings, no matter how well-founded and reasoned, will be subject to criminal investigation, even when there is no indication that they were issued for unlawful reasons.”

In the statement, the City Bar emphasizes that judicial independence is a fundamental pillar of the rule of law and an essential requirement for ensuring access to justice and the protection of human rights. “The possibility that judges could be investigated and sanctioned for issuing rulings in the exercise of their judicial duties undermines basic principles of due process and violates international standards of judicial independence,” the statement says.

The statement cites the United Nations Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary and other binding decisions by international courts, including the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

According to that court, “judges must be free to exercise their constitutional functions without fear of undue interference, particularly when issuing legally plausible rulings.”

“Sanctioning judges Santamaría Chamú and Ruiz Márquez for exercising their constitutional review function violates this principle,” the statement says.

The City Bar calls on the Mexican government, the Attorney General’s Office, the Federal Judiciary Council, and other relevant authorities to “immediately cease any form of criminalization or retaliation against judges who have carried out their duties in accordance with their constitutional obligations,” respect the autonomy of the judiciary and comply with international recommendations on judicial independence.

This is the second City Bar statement related to the judicial reform process in Mexico. In a previous statement issued on August 21, 2024, the City Bar expressed its concern over the reform, at the time a proposal supported by the former president, due to its potential negative impact on judicial independence and the rule of law.

The City Bar’s Inter-American Affairs Committee and Task Force on the Independence of Lawyers and Judges also signed on to the statement.

Read the full statement here:

Statement Expressing Concern over the Criminalization of Judges in Mexico