Spanish Courts and Arbitration     

1. General information  

2. The Spanish courts  

2.1. The Supreme Court  

2.2. National Court  

2.3. Regional High Courts  

2.4. Provincial Court  

2.5. Minors'Courts, Courts of Prison Vigilance, Labour Courts, the Administrative Courts, Criminal Courts  

2.6. Courts of the First Instance and Instruction  

2.7. Justice of the Peace  

2.8. The_Constitutional_Court  

3. Arbitration  

3.1. General Information  

3.2. The Arbitration Award  

1. General information 

The Spanish Court system is governed by the General Council of the Judiciary (Consejo General del Poder Judicial), conceived in the   1978 Spain Constitution , it is independent from the legislative and executive branches of Government.  

For the purposes of the administration of justice, the State distributes the courts on a   regional basis : in town districts, Provinces and Autonomous Communities. 

The Spanish Court   system   is   hierarchical ; the scheme of the Spanish courts below shows the different levels in which the Courts are structured from the highest to the lowest level. This scheme   neither include   the   Constitutional Court   (which is at the same level than the Supreme Court) nor the   Military Jurisdiction , which has its own courts also structured in different levels. 

Normally the legal action begins in the Court of First Instance, the appeals and counter-appeals go to higher courts. 

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2. The Spanish Courts  

2.1. The Supreme Court 

The Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo) is the highest level of justice in the Spanish system, it is based in   Madrid , and its jurisdiction extends throughout the   Spanish territory   and over all judicial matters. 

It is divided into   five Chambers   (Civil, Criminal, Social, Military and Administrative) and hears appeals for the annulment, or revision, of sentences handed down by the National or Regional High Courts. It also tries civil or criminal cases against the President of the Government, Ministers, Members of Parliament etc… 

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2.2. National Court 

The National Court (Audiencia Nacional) has its seat in Madrid, with jurisdiction over the whole Spanish territory, with the following chambers: 

• The   Criminal Chamber   tries those cases involving crimes committed against the Royal Family, high Government officials, major drug trafficking, counterfeiting and offences committed outside the Spanish Territory which are prosecuted in Spain. It also decides on Extradition requests and hears appeals against the sentences determined by the Central Criminal Courts, the Central Instruction Courts and the Central Minors' Court. 
• The   Administrative Chamber   hears the appeals against the decisions adopted by the Ministers and the Secretaries of the Spanish State. 
• The   Social Chamber   tries the special process for contesting collective bargaining agreements applicable to a territory, which is bigger than an Autonomous Community; it also tries those processes about collective labour conflicts. 

Within the National Court, the   Central Examining Courts   (Juzgados Centrales de Instrucción ) investigate and prepare cases to be tried either in the Central Criminal Court or the National Court. The   Central Criminal Courts   (Juzgados Centrales de lo Penal) hear only those cases involving crimes which punishments do not exceed 5 years imprisonment. 

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2.3. Regional High Courts 

The Regional High Court (Tribunal Superior de Justicia de las Comunidades Autónomas) is the   highest level   of Justice   within each Autonomous Community   of Spain. It is divided into   4 Chambers : Civil, Criminal, Administrative and Labour. 

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2.4. Provincial Court 

The Provincial Court (Audiencia Provincial)   tries civil   and   criminal cases . Its   jurisdiction   extends throughout the   Province   and is located in its capital. 

This Court tries those crimes which prescribed sentence could   exceed 5 years imprisonment . 

These also   hear appeals   against sentences and decisions determined by the lower Courts: Instruction Court, Criminal Courts of the Province, Courts of First Instance, Courts of Prison Vigilance and from the Minors Court of the province. 

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2.5. Minors' Courts, the Courts of Prison Vigilance, Labour Courts, the Administrative Courts, Criminal Courts 

• The   Minor's Courts   (Juzgados de Menores) hear those cases involving minors under the age of 16, its jurisdiction may extend several provinces within an Autonomous Community. 
• The   Courts of Prison Vigilance   (Juzgados de Vigilancia Penitenciaria) look after the operation of prisons and the legal rights of detainees. They grant parole and any condition attached to it. 
• The Labour Courts (Juzgados de lo Social) hear all labour and work-related cases. 
• The   Administrative Courts   (Juzgados de lo Contencioso-Administrativo) hear the administrative appeals. These Courts also give permission for the authorities to enter the dwellings as well as to those places where it is required the owner's consent. 

• The   Criminal Courts   (Juzgados de lo Penal) try the crimes prepared and investigated by the Court of the 1st Instance, the maximum penalty for the crimes must not exceed 5 years imprisonment. 

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2.6. First Instance and Examining Courts 

• The Courts of the First Instance (Juzgados de Primera Instancia) hear civil cases, which are not legally prescribed to be heard by another higher court. 

These also hear appeals in civil cases against judgements handed down by the Justice of Peace. 

• The   Examining Courts   (Juzgados de Instrucción): 
• • Investigate and prepare criminal cases to be tried in other courts (Provincial Audiences and Criminal Courts). 
  • Try misdemeanour cases  which cannot be tried before the Justice of the Peace. 
  • Is in charge of the   Habeas Corpus procedure .  
  • Hear appeals in criminal cases against judgements handed down by Justice of Peace. 

In civil cases, appealing before a Provincial Court does not preclude the possibility of provisional enforcement of judgments delivered in the Court of First Instance. 

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2.7. Justice of the Peace 

The Justice of Peace (Juzgados de Paz) operates in small communities with no First Instance and Instruction Courts. They hear   minor civil cases , among their functions; they sometimes work as Civil Registry Body. The Provincial Court appoints the Judges Justice for a period of 4 years. 

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2.8. The Constitutional Court 

The Constitutional Court (Tribunal Constitucional) is at the same level as the Supreme Court though it is an independent court which only considers   constitutional matters , cases in which it is alleged violation of constitutional rights and Disputes between the State and Autonomous Communities. 

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3. Arbitration 

3.1. General Information 

Arbitration is an   out-of-court alternative mechanism   of dispute resolution whereby an impartial third party issues a decision, which in Spain is binding on the parties. 

When the case is submitted to arbitration, no legal action before Spanish Courts can be taken at the same time. 

The   procedure   governing Arbitration shall be set by the parties, in the absence of agreement, the procedure shall be set by the arbitrators. 

There exist some   cases   which   cannot be object   of arbitration: 

• Those cases on which a definitive resolution has been devolved upon. 
• Those cases in which intoxication, injury, death or rational sign of offence exist. 
• Those cases on which the   Public Prosecutor   shall intervene (cases involving minors…). 
• Cases linked to those on which both parties have no authority. 

In   Consumption matters , the arbitral procedure is initiated through the arbitration requests presented by a Spanish Consumers Association (Asociación de Consumidores) or directly by the consumer. 

The   Consumption Arbitration Board   (Junta Arbitral de Consumo) and the   Arbitral College   (Colegio Arbitral) shall intervene in the arbitration procedure. 

In   Mercantile matters , corporations may use arbitration in Spain to resolve any conflict arising between them instead of taking legal action before the Spanish Courts, in such a case the contracts or agreements reached between both corporations shall include an arbitration clause. 

These are only general guidelines and not definitive statements of the law, all questions about the law's applications to individual cases shall be directed to a  Spanish lawyer . 

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3.2. The Arbitration Award   

The arbitration award (laudo arbitral) shall be   issued   in writing within   6 months   since the parties agreed to resolve their conflict through Arbitration. 

The arbitration award will be binding and its effects will be the same as the items yet judged. It   may   be directly enforced before the courts. 

It may be determined according to the   principles of natural justice or on the basis of an   existing regulation . 

Annulment appeal   (Recurso de Anulación) against the Arbitration Award may be submitted before the Provincial Court and   Revision appeal   (Recurso de Revisión) can also be submitted according to what is established in prosecution act for final judicial sentences. The services of a Spanish Lawyer will be required to file the appeal. 

These are only general guidelines and not definitive statements of the law, all questions about the law's applications to individual cases shall be directed to a  Spanish lawyer .

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