SPAIN Trends and Developments Contributed by: Amparo Arbáizar, Arbáizar Abogados
New Admission Requirements to be Able to Proceed at the Jurisdiction of Spain A major legal reform has taken place in the Span ‑ ish jurisdiction which, since 3 April 2025, requires an additional step to initiate proceedings before civil courts, and which also affects family matters. Organic Law 1/2025, of January 2, on measures regarding the efficiency of the Public Justice Service, completes the three efficiency bills of the “Justice 2030 Plan”: digital, organisational and procedural transformation. Law 1/2025 reforms the organisation of justice, transforming single-judge courts into Courts of First Instance and attempts to alleviate the judicialisation of litigation by requiring the use of Appropriate Meth ‑ ods of Dispute Resolution “ Métodos Adecuados de Solución de Controversias – MASC ” as a requirement for the admission of the claim in general civil and com ‑ mercial matters. When deemed appropriate based on workload, a Family, Childhood and Capacity Section will be cre ‑ ated in the Court of First Instance, which will extend its jurisdiction to the entire judicial district. Consequently, not all first instance courts in Spain have a Family, Children, and Capacity Section; as a general rule, these sections exist only in larger towns and not in villages. Therefore, not all Spaniards have access to a judge specialising in family law; only those living in larger towns have access. Spanish lawmakers have priori ‑ tised proximity and the presence of courts in most Spanish towns over citizens’ access to a judge expert in Family Law. Definition of the new admission requirement for the “MASC” claim Article 2 of Law 1/2025 defines Appropriate Methods of Dispute Resolution (MASC) as any type of negotia ‑ tion activity recognised by law to which the parties resort in good faith to find a solution to their conflict by themselves or with the intervention of a neutral third party.
Therefore, since April 2025, it is generally required to prove that this negotiation activity has been carried out for the admission of the civil claim, that is, as a procedural requirement. To fulfill the requirement, not just any negotiating activ ‑ ity is valid, but only that recognised by Law 1/2025 itself and by other state or regional laws. Examples of valid negotiation activity would be the following: • direct negotiation between the parties or through their lawyers; • collaborative lawyers; • mediation; • conciliation; • confidential binding offer; and • opinion of an independent expert. This negotiation process can be carried out in person or by electronic means, either fully or partially. Exceptions to the ADR prerequisite in family law pro ‑ ceedings are: • application only for dissolution of marriage by divorce without any additional measures; and • very urgent measures to safeguard the protection of a minor under Article 158 of the Civil Code. For example: cases of unlawful removal or retention of a minor abroad. Accreditation of having completed a MASC The negotiating activity must be documented in the manner provided for in Article 10 of Law 1/2025. If a neutral third party has not intervened, accredita ‑ tion will be fulfilled by means of any document signed by both parties, informing of the subject of the dispute and the date of the meeting or meetings. Negotiating activity may also be proven by a docu ‑ ment that shows that the other party has received the request to negotiate, the content of the proposal and the date.
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