Ley 13.433: régimen de resolución alternativa de conflictos penales

What this is about

This law of the Province of Buenos Aires, enacted in La Plata on December 21, 2005, establishes a regime for the alternative resolution of criminal conflicts under the Public Prosecution Service (Ministerio Público). It organizes mediation and conciliation as ways to pacify the conflict, seek reconciliation between the parties, encourage voluntary reparation of the harm, and avoid revictimization, always within a jurisdictional framework and with respect for constitutional guarantees. It is addressed to those involved in the preparatory criminal investigation: prosecutors, defense counsel, professionals in the departmental offices, and the parties themselves. It defines which cases may be referred and which are excluded, and it regulates the procedure step by step, from the summons to the final record. It also sets the effects of agreements on the proceedings, their follow-up, and the institutional structure that supports the system.

Annotated table of contents

• Chapter I. General provisions (arts. 1-5). Creates the regime within the Public Prosecution Service and sets its purpose and principles: voluntariness, confidentiality, speed, informality, free access, and neutrality of those who mediate, with the victim's express consent. Assigns the procedure to the Departmental Offices for the Alternative Resolution of Conflicts, with a minimum technical team of lawyers, psychologists, and social workers.
• Chapter I. General provisions (art. 6. Cases in which the procedure applies). Allows intervention in correctional cases referred by the prosecutor's office and highlights family, cohabitation, or neighborhood conflicts and those of a property nature; admits concurrent offenses with a maximum penalty of up to six years. Lists exclusions, such as cases involving minors as victims, except for legal exceptions, and certain offenses against life, sexual integrity, and public authorities, and limits repeated use of the procedure.
• Chapter II. Procedure (arts. 7-13). Regulates how the process begins, at the request of the prosecutor's office, the parties, or the victim, and its availability until the trial begins. Provides for the assessment of the referral, summonses with notice of the voluntary nature of the process, the consequences of failure to appear, personal attendance with legal counsel, consultation of the registry, and the format of the meetings.
• Chapter II. Procedure (arts. 14-19). Establishes the confidentiality agreement at the outset, the informal and oral conduct of the sessions, and the possible involvement of the technical team. Details the content of the agreement record, which does not imply an admission of guilt, the report to the prosecutor's office within ten days, and a period of sixty calendar days, extendable by thirty.
• Chapter III. Effects (arts. 20-21). Provides for the closure of the proceedings when the claims are satisfied, or a conditional closure subject to compliance with the agreed obligations, with reopening if they are breached. Empowers the office to monitor what was agreed and to refer to public or private entities when treatment or programs are agreed upon.
• Chapter IV. Supplementary provisions (arts. 22-26). Entrusts the Central Mediation Office of the Attorney General's Office (Procuración General) with training, coordination, and statistics, and creates a Single Registry of Alternative Conflict Resolutions. Establishes professional secrecy for those who conduct interviews, authorizes budget allocations, and orders that the law be communicated to the Executive Branch.

Key ideas

• Criminal mediation and conciliation are placed within the Public Prosecution Service and the criminal process, not outside it, and must respect constitutional guarantees.
• The stated purpose combines pacification of the conflict, voluntary reparation of the harm, and prevention of revictimization.
• The victim's express consent is a necessary condition of the procedure.
• The law delimits referable cases by type of offense and penalty, and expressly excludes certain offenses and situations.
• The parties participate in person, with the right to legal counsel, and confidentiality is formalized through an agreement at the outset.
• The agreement reached does not imply admitting guilt in response to financial claims, unless otherwise agreed.
• Compliance with what was agreed determines the final closure of the case or the resumption of the preparatory criminal investigation.
• A single registry and a central office seek to unify criteria, train teams, and produce statistics.

Practical uses

• Which criminal cases may be referred to mediation in the Province of Buenos Aires, and which are excluded?
• Who may request that the process begin, and up to what point in the proceedings may it be requested?
• What steps does the procedure follow, from summoning the parties to signing the record?
• What effects does an agreement have on the preparatory criminal investigation, and what happens if it is not honored?
• What guarantees of confidentiality and professional secrecy protect those who take part?

Key terms

criminal mediation, conciliation, alternative dispute resolution, Public Prosecution Service (Ministerio Público), Departmental Offices for the Alternative Resolution of Conflicts, preparatory criminal investigation, victim's consent, voluntariness, confidentiality, revictimization, reparation of harm, agreement record, closure of proceedings, Single Registry of Alternative Conflict Resolutions, professional secrecy