Commenting on his appointment, Mr de la Mata said: ‘Our role is connecting dots, transcending distance, different systems or languages. And more than that, connecting people, helping them to build trust across borders, in a permanent and proactive exercise of mutual understanding, always looking for the common ground beyond the enriching differences in our legal systems, in order to achieve a common goal: effective justice provided in our countries through a fair and due process.’

Mr de la Mata entered the judiciary in Spain in 1987. He has been a member of the prosecutor’s body, serving in several judicial positions in the criminal jurisdiction, including as investigative judge in Algeciras and Cádiz, as judge in criminal trials in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in the Court of Appeals of Las Palmas and Madrid, and in the High Court of Justice of Madrid. From 2015 to 2020, he served as judge of the Central Investigative Court No 5 of the National Court.

Mr de la Mata has held the positions of lawyer of the General Council of the Judiciary (1993-2001), where he was Director of its Continuing Training and International Relations Departments, lawyer in the service of the Constitutional Court (2003-2009), and General Director of Modernisation in the Ministry of Justice and Secretary-General of the Administration of Justice (2009-2011), where he promoted the creation of the International Legal Cooperation Network of Lawyers of the Judicial Administration.

As contact point for Spain in the Network of National Experts on Joint Investigation Teams (the JITs Network) since 2017, Mr de la Mata has engaged in intense international activity as a consultant, expert and director on projects funded by the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation AECID, UNDP, IADB, WB, EU and others.