Civil law & contracts in Spain

Clear English guides on civil law & contracts in Spain, based on official Spanish law (BOE).

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Civil law & contracts

Buying property in Spain as a foreigner: the legal steps

Purchasing a home in Spain is a dream for thousands of expats, retirees, and international investors every year. The country’s exceptional climate,…

Civil law & contracts

Taxes when buying property in Spain

Buying a property in the sunny plains of Andalusia, the bustling streets of Madrid, or along the Mediterranean coast is a dream for thousands of expats…

Civil law & contracts

How to Claim a Debt in Spain: Legal Steps and Options

The non-payment of an invoice, rent, or a personal loan is one of the most frustrating and destabilising situations that an individual or a company can…

Civil law & contracts

Proceso Monitorio: How to Claim Debts Quickly in Spain

In the daily economic activity of both individuals and businesses, unpaid invoices, rent, or services are among the most recurring and destabilising…

Civil law & contracts

Unpaid Promissory Note or Cheque in Spain: How to Recover Your Money

Receiving a promissory note or a cheque as payment for a service, a sale, or rent, only to discover that it has no funds, is one of the most…

Civil law & contracts

Debt Statute of Limitations in Spain: Deadlines You Must Know

Did you know that in Spain, debts do not last forever? Many citizens and foreign residents are unaware that the passage of time, combined with the…

Civil law & contracts

Ley de Segunda Oportunidad: Cancel Debt in Spain

The accumulation of unsustainable debts can become a financial and emotional burden that suffocates the daily life of any individual, whether they are…

Civil law & contracts

Being in ASNEF: How to Get Off a Spanish Bad Debtors List

Discovering that your name appears on a bad debtors list like ASNEF is usually an unpleasant surprise that shows up at the worst possible moment: when…

Civil law & contracts

Peer-to-Peer Loans in Spain: How to Do It Legally

Lending money to a family member or a friend is an extremely common practice in Spain to fund personal projects, buy a home, or get through a financial…

Civil law & contracts

Claiming Damages in Spain: How the Legal Process Works

When we suffer financial, physical, or moral harm due to the action or omission of another person or company, the Spanish legal system grants us the…

Civil law & contracts

Civil Liability in Spain: When Are You Entitled to Compensation?

Imagine walking down the street and an object falls from a balcony, causing an injury that prevents you from working for weeks. Or think of that…

Civil law & contracts

Traffic Accident Compensation in Spain: The Baremo Scale

Suffering a traffic accident is a traumatic experience that, in addition to physical and emotional consequences, usually triggers a complex…

Civil law & contracts

How to Claim Insurance After a Car Accident in Spain

Suffering a car accident is a stressful experience that, in a matter of seconds, completely disrupts our daily routine. Beyond the initial shock and…

Civil law & contracts

Purchase and Sale Contract in Spain: Essential Elements

Buying or selling a property, a vehicle, or any other asset of value in Spain is one of the most significant financial and legal decisions in a…

Civil law & contracts

Breach of Contract in Spain: Legal Options for Expats

When we sign an agreement in Spain, whether it is to rent a property, hire a home renovation service, or acquire professional services, we trust that…

Civil law & contracts

Penalty Clauses in Spanish Contracts: How They Protect You

When signing a contract in Spain—whether it is a rental agreement, a property purchase contract, or a service agreement—one of the biggest concerns is…

Civil law & contracts

Contract Resolution in Spain: Causes, Effects & Legal Steps

When we sign a contract in Spain, whether it is a rental agreement, a purchase sale, or a service contract, we do so with the expectation that both…

Civil law & contracts

Arras Contract in Spain: What You Sign Before Buying Property

Buying a property in Spain is, for most people, the most significant financial transaction of their lives. However, the excitement of finding the…

Civil law & contracts

Power of Attorney in Spain: Types and Practical Guide for Expats

Imagine you need to sign the sale of a property in Madrid but are held up for work reasons in London, or that a sudden illness prevents you from going…

Civil law & contracts

How to Revoke a Power of Attorney in Spain: A Step-by-Step Guide

Granting a power of attorney is an act of utmost trust that allows another person, the apoderado (attorney-in-fact/agent), to act and sign on your…

Civil law & contracts

Usucapion in Spain: How to Acquire Property by Possession

Is it possible to become the legal owner of a home, a plot of land, or a valuable object simply through the passage of time and its continuous use? The…

Civil law & contracts

Boundary Delimitation in Spain: Resolving Property Disputes

Have you discovered that your neighbor's fence encroaches a few meters into your plot? Or perhaps you are thinking of selling your land and have…

Civil law & contracts

Damage Caused by Animals: Who is Liable Under Spanish Law?

What happens when a neighbor's dog bites a passerby, a runaway horse causes a traffic accident, or a tenant's cat destroys the fixtures of a rented…

Civil law & contracts

Slip and Fall on Public Streets in Spain: How to Claim

Walking down the street is an everyday activity we do without thinking about the risks, but a loose tile, a poorly placed manhole cover, or an oil…

Civil law & contracts

Medical Malpractice in Spain: How to Claim Compensation

Undergoing medical treatment or surgery means placing our health, and sometimes our lives, in the hands of healthcare professionals. Although medicine…

Civil law & contracts

Right to Honor, Privacy and Own Image in Spain: How to Protect It

In the digital age, where overexposure on social media, the instant dissemination of information, and the use of artificial intelligence technologies…

Civil law & contracts

Defamation on Social Media in Spain: How to Protect Your Reputation

In the digital age, a malicious comment, a fake review, or an unfounded rumor on social networks like Instagram, X (Twitter), TikTok, or Facebook can…

Civil law & contracts

Right to Be Forgotten: How to Delete Your Data from Google in Spain

In the digital age, our private, professional, and financial lives leave a digital footprint that does not always disappear over time. A past mistake,…

Civil law & contracts

Out-of-Court Claims in Spain: The Legal Power of the Burofax

In the daily legal routine in Spain, finding yourself facing a non-payment, a breach of contract, or a dispute with a neighbour is a more common…

Civil law & contracts

Juicio Verbal in Spain: When It Is Used and Financial Limits

Starting a judicial process in Spain can feel like an incomprehensible bureaucratic labyrinth, especially if you are unfamiliar with the tools that the…

Civil law & contracts

Court Costs in Spain: Who Pays if You Win or Lose?

Starting a judicial proceeding in Spain usually generates one of the most recurring and feared doubts for citizens and foreign residents: how much will…

Civil law & contracts

Legal Aid in Spain: Requirements for a Court-Appointed Lawyer

Are you facing a legal problem in Spain, such as an eviction, a divorce, or a debt claim, but you do not have the financial resources to pay for a…

Civil law & contracts

Service Agreement vs. Work Contract in Spain: Key Differences

In the Spanish legal and economic landscape, it is extremely common to hire professionals to carry out tasks ranging from renovating a home to tax…

Civil law & contracts

Fianza vs. Aval in Spain: Differences and Legal Guarantees

When renting a property, applying for a bank loan, or signing a commercial contract in Spain, it is extremely common to be asked for "guarantees" to…

Civil law & contracts

Unjust Enrichment in Spain: When and How to Claim Your Money Back

Have you ever felt that someone has financially benefited at your expense in a completely unjustified way, leaving you with a real financial loss? In…

Civil law & contracts

Donations in Spain: How to Make Them and When They Can Be Revoked

Donation is one of the most common legal formulas in Spain for transferring assets between family members or close relatives, but it is also one of the…

Civil law & contracts

Comodato in Spain: Free Loan of Property for Expats

Do you need to hand over a property to a family member without charging them anything, or perhaps lend a vehicle or machinery to a trusted friend,…

Civil law & contracts

Joint and Several Liability in Spain: Solidaria vs. Mancomunada

When we sign a rental contract, apply for a bank loan with a partner, or face a claim for damages, legal terminology often appears that causes great…

Civil law & contracts

Lending Money to a Friend in Spain and How to Get It Back

Lending money to a friend or family member is a very common act of generosity, but when trust is broken and the debtor fails to pay you back, the…

Civil law & contracts

Standard Contract Terms in Spain: Validity and Expats' Rights

Every day, thousands of foreign citizens and expats living in Spain sign adhesion contracts—from setting up an electricity tariff to signing a mortgage…

Civil law & contracts

Vices of Consent in Spanish Law: Error, Fraud and Duress

When we sign a contract, buy a property, or accept an inheritance in Spain, we start from the premise that we are doing so freely and with a full…

Civil law & contracts

Nullity and Voidability of a Contract in Spain: Key Differences

When we sign a contract in Spain, whether to rent a property, buy a vehicle, or contract a service, we tend to think that the document is definitive…

Civil law & contracts

Spanish Horizontal Property Law: Basic Rules for Communities

Living in a property owners' community in Spain is the daily reality for millions of residents, but it is also one of the most common sources of legal…

Civil law & contracts

Building Defects in Spain: How to Claim Against the Builder

Buying a property or undertaking a major renovation is, for the vast majority of citizens and foreign residents in Spain, the largest investment of…