SPAIN Law and Practice Contributed by: Gabriel Rodríguez-Ramos, RODRIGUEZ RAMOS ABOGADOS
protection against retaliation; (c) legal assistance in criminal proceedings and in cross-border civil proceedings in accordance with community regulations; and (d) financial and psychological support, excep - tionally, if so decided by the Independent Whistle-Blower Protection Authority (AAI) after assessing the circumstances arising from the submission of the communication. Entities face fines (ranging from EUR100,000 to EUR1 million – Article 65.1 Law 2/2023) in case the internal systems are not implemented in the prescribed man - ner. 6.5 Incentives Provided to Whistle-Blowers No rewards or incentives are offered to whistle-blow - ers different from the protection measures expressed against retaliation and supportive measures. There is no civil enforcement of anti-bribery and anti- corruption laws complementary to the civil conse - quences of the criminal offences detailed previously, that are discussed in respect of the criminal process. In general terms, the civil consequences could be indemnity (if there are damages derived from the criminal action to be compensated), reparation (if physical situations can be restored/repaired to their original condition), restitution (if there are things to be returned) and nullity (of public resolutions). There are some administrative specific enforcements that can affect the anti-bribery and anti-corruption policies, as follows. • Associated to the NextGenerationEU (NGEU) Euro - pean funds (to be applied in public procurement or financial aids awarded by national administrative authorities), the administrative bodies with author - ity to decide the final application and destination of the funds, must have implemented an anti-fraud plan evaluating and adopting controls and due diligence procedures against the risks: 7. Enforcement Trends 7.1 Enforcement
(a) linked to applicant selection:
(i) conflicts of interest within the evaluation board; (ii) false declarations by applicants; and (iii) double funding; (b) linked to implementation and verification: (i) undisclosed conflict of interests or bribes and kickbacks; (ii) avoidance of required competitive proce - dure; (iii) manipulation of the competitive procedure process; (iv) collusive bidding; (v) defective pricing; (vi) manipulation of cost claims; (vii) non-delivery or substitution of products; (viii) amendment of existing contract; (ix) overstatement of quality or activities of personnel; (x) false labour costs; and (xi) labour costs apportioned incorrectly to specific projects; (c) linked to certification and payments: (i) incomplete/inadequate management verifi - cation process; (ii) incomplete/inadequate expenditure certifi - cation process; (iii) conflicts of interest within the MA; and (iv) conflicts of interest within the certifying authority; (i) avoidance of required competitive proce - dure; (ii) manipulation of the competitive procedure process; and (iii) undisclosed conflict of interests or bribes and kickbacks; (e) linked to the regulation of the protection of individuals reporting regulatory violations and (d) linked to direct procurement: combating corruption, the AAI and regional anti-fraud agencies can supervise the imple - mentation systems of both private companies and public institutions to receive information and investigate regulatory violations. Criminal enforcement is led by the criminal jurisdiction of the Spanish judicial power.
227 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook