Spanish Lawyer in the UK

When a UK resident requires Spanish law assistance, whether that’s regarding buying a Spanish property, dealing with Spanish probate, Spanish wills or Spanish powers of attorneys, or a matter relating to a business in Spain, using an Abogado based in Spain may seem like the obvious choice to make. However, having spoken to many clients who have initially opted for this option, on many occasions, this may result in several issues you may have not anticipated. Issues that can be avoided by choosing a UK based Spanish lawyer.

There are a number of reasons why using a Spanish lawyer based in the UK is beneficial.

UK based Solicitors specialised in Spanish law can provide a seamless transition between the UK and Spanish legal systems.

Using a dual qualified Solicitor means your Solicitor can clearly explain how the Spanish legal system differs to the UK. I can therefore can advise on the best way forward with regards to your matter bearing in mind the different legal systems.

A Spanish based lawyer in Spain may not understand all the consequences with regards to your UK interests. For example, I have seen many cases in which the Spanish will invalidated the UK will when this was not the intention.

You will always benefit from someone to explain to you your case using easily understandable UK legal jargon. They will also be able to explain the differences between jurisdictions. In Spain, the stages in your case can greatly differ to what you would generally expect in the UK, so providing you an explanation of the equivalent could give you some piece of mind and enable you to understand the process more clearly.

You will also need to be careful with people in Spain saying they are Spanish lawyers, when in fact they do not have any legal background whatsoever and they are not registered in any Spanish Law Bars.

Your solicitor is on hand as and when you need them

Unfortunately, the UK climate doesn’t warrant the need for us to take an afternoon siesta, so you won’t need to worry about your Solicitor being unavailable for the best part of the afternoon. As well as that, there’s no time difference to get in the way of you speaking with your Solicitor. Therefore, your UK based Solicitor will be available during normal UK hours – and at the end of a non-premium telephone phone number!

It saves money

Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of using a UK based Spanish lawyer is the money saving (along with the time saving!). Using a Solicitor specialised in Spanish law that has an in depth understanding of both English and Spanish jurisdictions for example, they, like myself may speak both languages. This saves huge expense and the inconvenience of paying for a translator in cases in which translation are merely needed to review the documentation first to obtain initial advice.

Lost in translation seems to also be a problem on occasions when dealing with some Spanish based lawyers. This together with the culture clash, may bring lots of problems in the case and it may end up taking much longer or having to change legal advisers which can increase the costs incurred.

You will also need to be careful with people in Spain saying they are Spanish lawyers, when in fact they do not have any legal background whatsoever and they are not registered in any Spanish Law Bars. It is always important to verify that your legal adviser is a qualified professional. As a consequence, I have assisted clients who came into difficulties due to have been advised by individuals with no legal knowledge, whose only interest was to finalise the translation to obtain a commission.

If you need an Spanish lawyer in the UK, please get in touch for a chat.