SPAIN Law and Practice Contributed by: Daniel Jimenez García and Álvaro Martín Talavera, SLJ Abogados
Administrative Offences Law 15/2007 on the Defence of Competition empow - ers the National Markets and Competition Commis - sion to investigate and sanction agreements between competitors to fix prices, allocate markets, limit pro - duction or co-ordinate bids in public tenders (bid rig - ging). Fines may reach 10% of the company’s turno - ver, with sanctions to directors up to EUR60,000. 3.7 Counterfeiting Intellectual Property Offences Article 270 of the Criminal Code punishes reproduc - ing, plagiarising, distributing or commercially exploit - ing protected works without consent, with the intent to profit and to the detriment of the rights holder. The penalty is six months to four years’ imprisonment plus a fine. The same penalty applies to facilitating access to pro - tected works via internet links or similar mechanisms. Penalties increase to six years where the econom - ic benefit is significant or a criminal organisation is involved. Industrial Property Offences Article 273 punishes unauthorised manufacture, import or marketing of patented goods or utility mod - els. The penalty is six months to two years’ imprison - ment. Article 274 punishes manufacturing or wholesaling counterfeit trademark goods (one to four years) and retail distribution (six months to three years). Penalties increase to six years where the econom - ic benefit is significant or a criminal organisation is involved. 3.8 Greenwashing and Environmental Pollution Violations Environmental Offences Article 325 of the Criminal Code punishes any person who, in breach of environmental protection regula - tions, causes emissions, discharges or other polluting conduct that causes or is capable of causing substan - tial harm to air quality, soil, water or flora and fauna.
The basic penalty is one to five years’ imprison - ment plus a fine, rising to six years when the amount exceeds EUR120,000 or aggravating factors (nomi - nees, opaque structures) are present. Voluntary regularisation before inspection exempts the taxpayer from liability. Subsidy Fraud Article 308 punishes obtaining subsidies or grants by falsifying conditions or misapplying funds, where the amount exceeds EUR10,000. The penalty is one to five years’ imprisonment plus a fine and loss of the right to obtain subsidies and tax benefits. Voluntary repayment before verification proceedings exempts the offender from liability. Absence of a Corporate Offence for Failure to Prevent Tax Evasion Spain has no standalone corporate offence for failure to prevent tax evasion. 3.6 Cartels and Anti-Competitive Offences Competition Offences Spanish law does not classify anti-competitive prac - tices as a standalone criminal offence. However, three Criminal Code provisions apply to collusive conduct: Article 262 punishes price distortion in public tenders and auctions (including bidder collusion, competitor intimidation and fraudulent attempts to frustrate auc - tions). The penalty is one to three years’ imprisonment, a fine and disqualification from public contracting. Article 281 punishes withdrawing raw materials or essential goods from the market to cause shortages, distort prices or harm consumers. The penalty is one to five years’ imprisonment. Article 284 may apply to collusive agreements dis - torting prices that would otherwise result from free competition (see 3.4 Financial Services Crime ).
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