Before we start this section of our web site it may help to understand a little about the principles of the Spanish legal system. By doing so you may well save yourself considerable pain and expense and by understanding how the system works, be able to avoid those situations from which recovery is just not possible. Start by understanding the crucial differences between Roman and Common law and that the philosophy of the Spanish legal system is that you be aware and responsible for the consequences of your own actions.

In some ways, Spanish law is delightfully simple. For instance, if you sign something, no matter what, then you are bound by it. No point exists in claiming at a later stage that it was unfair or you did not understand what it was you signed because you did sign it and in law this means you understood. If you did not understand it or did not know what it was that you were signing then you should not have signed it. An example which shows how Spanish law expects you to be aware of what you are doing can be illustrated using the cigarette companies as an example.

In both the UK and the USA, cigarette companies have been sued for billions of dollars because of the harm done to the health of smokers. In Spain it is not possible to bring such an action because it is reasonably predictable that you are going to damage your health if you smoke and consequently it is down to you to decide whether or not you will. Your health will never be the responsibility of the cigarette companies. When it comes to the Spanish legal system, there is no nanny state, no law to protect you from yourself - you are on your own and responsible for your actions. If you take advice from a professional, act on it and later find out that it was wrong you are still responsible for any action you may have taken and which was based on the advice you took and paid for!.

The Spanish legal system whilst getting better is nonetheless. Inefficient, slow, constantly rocked by scandals with local courts, judges and lawyers regularly accused of abusing the system to suit their own ends. it is said that anyone with enough knowledge or money can use the law to their own advantage. But there is also a bad side to the Spanish legal system. . . Humour aside, litigation in Spain is possible but best avoided.

At the height of the building boom there were over 180 legal actions being brought each week in the Spanish courts for matters concerning property purchase. Some of these actions will take years to finalise and at the end of this time there can be no guarantees. It is said that anyone contemplating litigation in the Spanish courts either has friends in high places or simply does not understand what is involved. Many foreigners resort to litigation when they find the building contract they signed was not that which they had been led to believe it was. More often than not this is not the result of slick footwork on behalf of a builder but simply that what was agreed between the parties had failed to find its way into the contract for reasons of inefficiency. Had a certified translation been asked for the situation would not have arisen.

Don't get involved!

The Spanish legal system is slow. If it were any slower it would go backwards. The courts are jammed with backlogs of thousands of cases some of which will take years before they get to court and many others will not even get to court! Even local courts can take an age to hear an action, by which time neither the plaintiff nor defendant can remember what the action is about and further, probably no longer care.

There have been numerous cases of plaintiffs going to court with actions, which because of the overwhelming weight of evidence were unbeatable but which they lost because of the incompetence of their lawyer or unfairness of the court system. When it comes to litigation in Spain it's best to just say no! However, sometimes this is just not possible.

How do I find a good lawyer?

Everyone you ask thinks they have the answer to this question, quoting someone they know or who a friend knows and who is an absolute legal genius. However, if results from recommendations are anything to go by then asking around among friends is probably not the best advice. Over many years we have managed to find a select few lawyers whom we use exclusively but if you have a property you wish to build or purchase, regardless as to whether or not you are utilising our services, we are quite happy to pass to you their contact numbers. We make no money by doing this but do benefit generally from people buying or building property without getting into trouble.

If you have current difficulties which you believe may require litigation, please take advice immediately. Nothing in Spain gets better by being left. Particularly if you have been involved in fraud.

Let's say it once and for all so there is no misunderstanding. In Spain it is possible to buy land, build property, buy and sell property and do virtually anything you want in regard to property without getting into trouble proving you or those represetning you know what they are doing and understand that there are no short cuts.

Everything seems to take an age in Spain, which when considering that its bureaucracy is probably the most pernicious in the world is not too surprising.

Be patient, ask many questions and don't do anything unless you can find a lawyer with whom you are absolutely confident.

There are of course excellent lawyers in Spain but you won't find them too often in the resort areas scrapping for the odd property sale or deep inland hidden in the boondocks. As with most countries of the world, the top lawyers are found in the major cities and Spain is no different. Madrid and Barcelona being good examples.

A very real problem with legal matters in Spain is the time it takes to realise something has gone wrong. A further eternity is then required for lawyers to bring the matter before the court and terribly infuriating is the practice they have in Spain of ignoring correspondence, and not returning telephone calls. If you find yourself in a situation where things are not looking too good don't wait to see how things turn out but seek competent, legal help immediately.

Delay in starting an action can be construed as having a weak case. Another matter which will be alien to most reading this is not getting involved in lengthy correspondence. The Spanish do not argue their case in writing with letters, emails and telephones calls exchanged on a regular basis and bombarding someone with correspondence may cause the belief that your action is weak or malicious. As correspondence from you is is unlikely to achieve anything it is better simply to instruct a lawyer at the first sign of trouble. The court expects this type of behaviour and it will help your case.

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