JUZGADOS THE COURTS MENORCA

THE LAW COURTS
OF MENORCA
" JUZGADOS "

There are two major Law Courts in Menorca.
Firstly Mahon, situated in a modern building behind the Avenida Fort de L´ eau and to get to their carpark there is a turning to the right from the " Anchor " round-about in that street.

SEE PLAN

The system is based on Roman Law , unlike the British legal system, which is based on precedent. This means that judges, ( jueces ), can be very young and straight out of University because they are not required to make decisions beyond the scope of the letter of the Law and cannot set a precedent. All they need know is the Law.

Solicitors, ( abogados ), are relatively inexpensive compared to British solicitors, and there are no such things as barristers in the Spanish legal system and no Council of the Bar, as in England.
Instead there is a " Colegio de Abogados ", ( College of Lawyers ), in each locality of importance which is responsible for granting lawyer´s qualifications and allowing external lawyers from other parts of the country to practice in their locality in a legal case.

If a member of the Public has a complaint sufficiently important to take to the police, then they can make what is known as a " Denuncia " in their local police station.
If the complaint is about a robbery or other crimes beyond the municipal town limits of Mahon or Ciutadella, then they must make their complaint to the " Guardia Civil " - Spanish Civil Guard , who patrol all rural areas.
Otherwise, for a crime within the town´s boundaries, they must go to the National Police who have a central police station in the Plaza Miranda of Mahon behind the fruit and vegetable market in the town centre.
The complaint is then passed to the Court duty judge, who, depending on the gravity and urgency of the complaint, will order the police to investigate and possibly to arrest those accused of some crime.
This is sometimes faulted if the judge is not made fully aware of events, so you must be precise as possible when you make the complaint, or otherwise, the police may not be instructed to act by the judge.
The police generally do not act unless instructed to do so, unless the circumstances are all too clear, such as a burglar caught red-handed in your home !

Here is a useful Internet reference concerning the legal system in Spain.

In the Mahon Court, at all levels, the staff are normally polite and friendly, although sometimes stress and too much paperwork can get the better of them

It is the experience of www.menorcainfo.net that it is always best to employ a lawyer from outside the island if dealing with a case which may conflict with local interests, at least in civil cases involving money or property problems.
All island communities are closely knit, and Menorca is no exception.

We can recommend several legal firms in Barcelona and Madrid, but are not permitted to publish names and addresses, being against legal etiquette.

If you have any questions or complaints about legal cases held here in Menorca you must , and probably best through your legal representative, write to the College of Abogados in Palma de Mallorca and if there is no satisfaction, then to the Consejo General de Poder Judicial in Madrid, ( General Legal Council ), who deal with complaints about Court procedures.
Finally, you can write to the Ombudsman - El Defensor del Pueblo - in Madrid, in your own language on a special form online , but only when all other channels have been exhausted.

I hope that you will find this information useful if you ever have the bad luck to be involved in a legal case.

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