4. Requests of the Commission. Based on the foregoing considerations, the Commission asked the Court to declare the international responsibility of the State of Guatemala for the violations indicated in its Merits Report (supra para. 2(c). Likewise, as measures of reparation, the Commission asked the Court to order the State to implement those included in said Report. II PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE COURT 5. Notification to the State and the representatives. The submission of the case was notified to the State and to the representative of the alleged victims 4 by means of communications dated November 13, 2020. 6. Failure to submit a brief with pleadings, motions and evidence. On January 23, 2021, the representative of the alleged victims submitted a request to extend the term to present the brief with pleadings, motions and evidence (hereinafter “pleadings and motions brief”), the deadline having expired on January 18, 2021. In a letter dated January 26, 2021, following the instructions of the President, the representative of the alleged victims was informed that the period for presenting the pleadings and motions brief could not be extended, and thus the processing of the case would continue without said brief. 7. Preliminary objections and answering brief. 5 On January 13, 2021, the State presented its brief containing its preliminary objections and answer to the submission of the case. 6 In said brief, the State raised two preliminary objections, denied the violations alleged and challenged the appropriateness of the measures of reparation requested. 8. Observations on the preliminary objections. On March 12, 2021, the representative and the Commission presented, respectively, their observations to the preliminary objections. 9. Public hearing. In an order issued on May 12, 2021, 7 the President of the Court called the parties and the Commission to a public hearing on the preliminary objections and possible merits, reparations and costs. In said order, the Court summoned ex officio two alleged victims to testify at the public hearing as well as an expert witness offered by the Commission. In 4 On June 8, 2020, the Court was notified that César Augusto Canil Xirum of CALDH would be representing the alleged victims. In briefs submitted on October 26, 2020, November 9, 2020, February 10, 2021, February 20, 2021, March 2, 2021, and May 5, 2021, the representative presented and clarified the powers of attorney granted by the alleged victims. On March 1, 2021, the State of Guatemala presented a brief alleging that some power of attorney letters were drafted after the deadline granted by the Court, and thus requested that such representation be disregarded. In a letter dated March 9, 2021, the Secretariat considered that, in order to respect the wishes of the alleged victims and the principle of procedural economy, the proceedings would continue with a single representative for all the alleged victims and, therefore, accepted the powers of attorney submitted and clarified by the representative. The State appointed Jorge Luis Donado Vivar, Attorney General of the Nation, as permanent agent and Lilian Elizabeth Nájera Reyes and María Gabriela Hernández Siguantay, of the Unit for International Affairs of the Attorney General’s Office, as alternate agents. 5 6 The State presented its preliminary objections and answer to the submission of the case on January 13, 2021, before the deadline for submitting the pleadings and motions brief. In a letter dated February 3, 2021, having refused to extend the period for the submission of the pleadings and motions brief, the State was asked to confirm whether this brief was its final version of the response or whether it wished to make additional observations or present a new brief. In a brief submitted on February 5, 2021, the State confirmed that the brief presented on January 13, 2021 was its final version of the answering brief. 7 Cf. Case of the Former Employees of the Judiciary v. Guatemala. Order of the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. May 12, 2021. Available at: http://www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/asuntos/extrabajadores del_organismo_judicial_12_05_21.pdf. 5