The Federal Oral Court 5 formally ordered on September 17 the separation of the trials for the cases Hotesur and Los Sauces. This judicial determination primarily affects the convicted former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and businessman Lázaro Báez, as well as Máximo Kirchner and Cristóbal López.
The court decided not to unify the hearings after concluding that the accusations have clearly differentiated procedural objects regarding companies, assets, sources of funds, and evidence, warning that conducting a joint process threatened to delay the debate by more than two years. The schedule set by the judges establishes the start dates for in-person hearings, ordering the trials to be conducted separately:
Case Los Sauces: It will begin on Friday, October 23, 2026 at 10:00. The hearings will take place on Mondays, Fridays, and Saturdays. To ensure the continuous progress of the process, the court exceptionally authorized Saturdays, October 24 and 31, 2026, as well as the first week of the judicial recess in January 2027 (reserving the second week of the recess in case of an eventual need). This decision responds to the fact that this case has a more advanced state of supplementary instruction.
Case Hotesur: The oral and public debate will begin on Friday, March 19, 2027 at 10:00.
In justifying the separation of the cases —which had originally been accumulated due to procedural connection— the judges noted that each case has almost 200 witnesses of its own and that both lists coincide in just over 20 people. In their arguments, the court emphasized that unifying the debate “does not strengthen the adversarial process: it prolongs the trial, disperses the attention of the parties, and multiplies the possibilities of suspension”.
Furthermore, they firmly stated that “There is no reason for the more advanced case to wait for pending proceedings from the other”, clarifying that the measure does not alter the accusations, the admitted evidence, or the right to defense. The hearing schedule must also adjust to the judges' agenda, who concurrently serve on other federal oral courts.
Case Los Sauces: Real Estate Billing and State Benefits
In the case Los Sauces, the accusation imputes the crimes of organized crime and money laundering through rental contracts and real estate and hotel operations. The prosecution links these payments to companies from the groups of Lázaro Báez and Cristóbal López (Grupo Indalo), allegedly in exchange for concessions, licenses, tax advantages, and state contracts.
The figures presented in the case reveal:
