Spanish counsel for international clients and foreign law firms enforcing judgments and arbitral awards against Spanish-located assets.
Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments and Awards in Spain
A judgment or an arbitral award is only worth what it can recover. When the debtor, the assets or the contractual interests sit in Spain, recognition and enforcement must be handled locally – and the formal exequatur procedure must be followed wherever the source decision falls outside the direct EU regime.
At DCC TAX & LEGAL, our dual-qualified UK barristers and Spanish abogados act for international clients and foreign law firms on the full enforcement workflow, from the recognition application through to asset attachment in Spain.
Recognition and Enforcement
International individuals, businesses and legal advisers regularly need to enforce foreign court judgments, arbitration awards or other legal decisions in Spain. Where assets, individuals, companies or contractual interests are located within the Spanish jurisdiction, local proceedings are normally required to secure recognition and to convert the foreign decision into enforceable Spanish process.
We act for international clients and law firms on recognition and enforcement matters throughout Spain, providing local representation and the practical management of proceedings before the Spanish courts.
Our services
Foreign judgments and legal decisions are not automatically enforceable in Spain in every circumstance. Depending on the country of origin and the nature of the decision, specific procedural requirements apply before a foreign judgment or award can be recognised and enforced by the Spanish courts.
Cross-border enforcement matters often need coordination across several jurisdictions, legal systems and advisers. We provide local Spanish counsel support with clear communication, focused strategy and disciplined management of proceedings — from the recognition application through to attachment of Spanish-located assets.
Areas of expertise
EU Civil and Commercial Judgments
Judgments from EU Member State courts in civil and commercial matters benefit from the simplest route. Under the Brussels I Recast Regulation (Regulation (EU) 1215/2012, in force since 10 January 2015), an EU judgment is automatically recognised in Spain and enforceable directly under Spanish procedural law — without any preliminary declaration of enforceability.
Enforcement proceeds before the relevant Juzgado de Primera Instancia on production of the standard EU certificate, the original judgment and certified Spanish translations. Refusal grounds are narrow: manifest contradiction with Spanish public policy, lack of proper service in the original proceedings, irreconcilability with a Spanish or recognised foreign judgment. We act for EU-based claimants enforcing against Spanish-located debtors, identifying and freezing assets, and running the local procedural side end to end.
UK judgments fall outside the Brussels regime and outside the Lugano Convention. They reach Spanish enforcement by one of two procedural routes:
- The 2005 Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements, where the underlying claim arises from an exclusive jurisdiction clause in favour of the English courts and the proceedings were commenced after 1 October 2015 (the date the Convention took effect for the EU).
- Law 29/2015 on International Legal Cooperation in Civil Matters — the Spanish domestic regime — where the 2005 Hague Convention does not apply.
Both routes require a formal exequatur application to the Spanish Juzgado de Primera Instancia, with the foreign judgment apostilled, translated by a sworn translator and supported by evidence of finality. We act for English claimants and for London firms whose clients have obtained an English judgment and now need it enforced against Spanish assets. UK-Spain enforcement is a steady fixture of our practice.
Judgments from non-EU, non-UK jurisdictions are recognised in Spain under one of three frameworks, applied in order of priority:
- A bilateral convention between Spain and the country of origin — for example with Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Morocco, Switzerland, Israel and others. Where a treaty applies, its terms govern.
- A multilateral instrument such as the 2005 Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements.
- Law 29/2015 on International Legal Cooperation in Civil Matters, as the default Spanish regime in the absence of a treaty.
The application is made to the Juzgado de Primera Instancia, supported by the apostilled or legalised judgment, sworn translation, and evidence of jurisdiction, due process and finality. The court reviews the file on limited substantive grounds and grants exequatur where the requirements are met. We act for clients from Latin America, the GCC, Switzerland and the United States on inbound enforcement, with particular depth on the Spain–Latin America corridor.
Spain is a pro-arbitration jurisdiction. Foreign arbitral awards are recognised and enforced under the 1958 New York Convention, to which Spain has been a party since 1977. Domestic arbitral awards are governed by the Spanish Arbitration Act (Law 60/2003).
New York Convention Awards
Foreign arbitral awards are recognised in Spain under Article V of the New York Convention. Refusal grounds are confined to a narrow list — invalid arbitration agreement, due-process failure, scope or arbitrability, finality, and public policy. Jurisdiction for the exequatur application sits with the Tribunal Superior de Justicia of the autonomous community where the award is to be enforced. We act for claimants holding ICC, LCIA, SCC, ICSID and ad-hoc awards, run the recognition application, and pursue Spanish-located assets through subsequent enforcement before the Juzgado de Primera Instancia.
Set-Aside Resistance
Where the losing party threatens or commences set-aside proceedings against a Spanish-seated award (the acción de anulación under Articles 40 to 43 of Law 60/2003), or resists recognition of a foreign award on Article V grounds, we act for the prevailing party. The Spanish Supreme Court and Constitutional Court have, in recent years, consolidated a pro-enforcement reading that confines set-aside grounds to genuine procedural and public-policy concerns. We coordinate with foreign counsel where parallel proceedings run at the seat, and we protect the award through to attachment of Spanish assets.
A coordinated cross-border approach
Recognition and enforcement matters rarely sit in isolation. They form part of wider international disputes, often involving several jurisdictions, parallel proceedings and time-sensitive asset preservation. We understand the importance of strategic coordination, confidentiality and efficient communication when running complex cross-border instructions.
We combine:
Dual-qualified lawyers with rights of audience in England and Wales and in Spain.
A working understanding of both common law and civil law systems.
Cultural and linguistic fluency for international representation.
Strategic coordination with local counsel where the matter calls for it.
Get in touch
We provide English-speaking legal support to clients requiring enforcement assistance across Spain. Our office network is in Madrid, Jerez and London, and we accept instructions on matters that need to be progressed before any Spanish court.
