In this page: Business Contract | Intellectual Property | Legal Framework of Business | International Dispute Resolution
Type of property and law | Validity | International Agreements Signed |
---|---|---|
Patent « Ley de patentes » (11/1986 of March 20) |
20 years | |
Trademark « Ley de marcas » (17/2001 of December 7) |
10 year protection, renewable by 10 year periods. |
Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks |
Design « Ley de protección Jurídica del Diseño Industrial » 20/2003 of July 7) |
5 year protection, renewable for 5 year periods, up to 25 years maximum. | |
Copyright Royal Legislative Order 1/1995 of April 12 |
lifetime of the author plus 70 years after his death. |
WIPO Copyright Treaty |
Industrial Models Royal Law-Order of July 26, 1929 |
20 years |
Penal Code | Law 10/1995, of November 23 |
Contracts and ownership law | Civil Code of 1889 |
Customs law | European Customs Code, Customs Laws (in Spanish) |
Commercial Law | Commercial Law of 1885 |
Company law | Commercial Law of 1885, Law 2/1995 on Limited Liability Companies, Law 12/2015 on Cooperatives , Order on Public Limited Companies, Law on Unfair Competition |
Labor law | Constitution of 1978, Law 8/1980 of March 10 on Workers' Status, Law 31/1995 of November 8 on Prevention of Work-Related Risks, Law 11/1985 of August 2 on Freedom of Association |
Consumer rights | Royal Legislative Decree 1/2007 on Consumer Protection |
Tribunal Supremo (Supreme Court) |
Higher legal body. |
Audiencia nacional (National Court) | Appellate court, Higher Criminal Court, Higher court for contentious administrative affairs (terrorism, falsification of money and organized crimes). |
Tribunales superiores de Justicia (Higher Courts of Justice) | Regional Supreme Courts |
Audiencias provinciales (Provincial Courts) | Civil (Magistrates' Court) and criminal (inquiry, penal, minors, prison follow-up) affairs |
Juzgados de Primera Instancia e Instrucción (Magistrate's and initial inquiry courts) | "Flagrante delicto" and Registry Office. |
Juzgados de lo Mercantil (Commercial courts) | Litigations related to business law. |
Juzgados de lo Penal (Penal courts) | Cases for which imprisonment is less than 5 years and other punishments are less than 10 years. |
Juzgados de lo Contencioso-Administrativo (Administrative courts) |
Disputes related to the operations of Administration, authorizing house searches. |
Juzgados de lo Social (Labor Courts) | Disputes related to work or social security. |
Juzgados de Vigilancia Penitenciaria (Imprisonment Execution Courts) | Imprisonment application (except for minors). |
Juzgados de Menores (Juvenile Courts) | Offences committed by minors between 14 and 18 years and in certain cases, majors between 18 and 21 years. |
Juzgados de Violencia sobre la Mujer (Courts for handling crimes against women) | Apart from what their name indicates, these are family courts in a broad sense. |
Juzgados de Paz (Justices of peace) | The justices of these courts are not professionals but are major citizens, enjoying civic rights and having a clean criminal record. They handle "neighborhood" problems, animal protection, etc. |
Tribunal Constitucional (Constitutional Court) | Judge of the constitutional nature of the legislative texts voted by the State or the Regions. Handles all the jurisdiction conflicts between the state and the Autonomous Communities. |
Tribunal de Cuentas (Audit Office) | Monitoring the economic and financial activity of the state. Each Autonomous Community has a similar regional court. |
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Latest Update: February 2025