Property lawyers in Spain: what they do, how to check

What a lawyer does in a purchase

In a property purchase the usual tasks are to read the documents before you sign (the reservation or deposit agreement, the preliminary contract, the loan offer), to examine what the land registry says about the property, and to advise on what the contract commits you to. We describe the trade generically; the sources we read are the statutes and code of conduct of the profession and the Civil Code, and none of them lists tasks for a purchase, so treat the list above as a general description and not as a legal rule.

Membership of a bar association

Ley 2/1974 on professional colleges, article 3.2, makes membership of the college a requirement where a state law establishes it. We did not read a provision on the bar in particular beyond the general statute, so for the point whether the title is compulsory in your case, ask the bar association. The statutes of the Spanish legal profession (Real Decreto 135/2021, consolidated text last updated 24 March 2021) govern lawyers’ advertising; the code of conduct, article 6.3, says “Deberá indicarse en la publicidad el Colegio al que se pertenezca.”

How to check a lawyer yourself

1. Ask the lawyer for their full name, bar association and membership number.
2. Open the Censo de Letrados of the CGAE (link above). The CGAE page says you can find a lawyer “por su nombre y apellidos o por su nº de colegiación”, and can list by bar association.
3. Compare what the census shows with what the lawyer told you. The CGAE warns that it is not possible to guarantee that the data are fully current (“no es posible garantizar la absoluta actualidad y vigencia de dichos datos”), so for any doubt, ask the bar association directly.
4. The bar association keeps its own public register of members under Ley 2/1974, article 10 (name, membership number, qualifications, professional address, authorisation to practise).

The terms of use of abogacia.es are those of its legal notice, which we read. They provide for personal use and say that commercial use is “prohibida”. They also say that reproduction or publication, in whole or in part, is “no estando permitida” without “el permiso previo y por escrito del titular”, and that where reproduction is authorised the source must be given. For that reason Payotte copies nothing from the census and tells you to search it yourself.

The notary’s separate role

A notary is not your lawyer. The Civil Code, article 1462, says: “Cuando se haga la venta mediante escritura pública, el otorgamiento de ésta equivaldrá a la entrega de la cosa objeto del contrato, si de la misma escritura no resultare o se dedujere claramente lo contrario.” In other words, signing the sale in a escritura pública (public deed) counts as delivery of the property unless the deed says otherwise. We have not read the Ley del Notariado itself for this page.

For a mortgage, Ley 5/2019, article 15.1, says the borrower must appear before the notary “por él elegido” to get in-person advice, and article 15.2 requires a prior notarial record (acta notarial previa) confirming that the required documents were delivered within the time limits. The choice of notary is the borrower’s. Notaries’ advertising is governed by the Reglamento Notarial, article 71, which says it should preferably be done through the websites of the notarial colleges and of the general council; Payotte therefore does not list notaries either.

Why Payotte keeps this page informational

Spanish rules let lawyers advertise freely under conditions (statute, article 19; code of conduct, article 6.1), but the code of conduct also makes a lawyer answerable for advertising done by a third party: article 7.3.c treats as unfair “la utilización de terceros como medio para eludir las obligaciones deontológicas” and adds: “Se considerará responsable al favorecido por la publicidad que realice un tercero, salvo prueba en contrario.” Article 18 bars paying or accepting commissions for sending clients unless the client is told. It is for this reason that Payotte presents no firm, makes no selection and takes no payment for introductions on this page.

Which professional to consult

Your choice of a lawyer is yours; use the steps above to check them. For a loan, see mortgage lenders; for the agent, real estate agents; for a technical opinion, architects.