Assault and Bodily Harm · Alicante · Madrid · All Spain
A bar fight, a road-rage incident or a scuffle on holiday can end in a Spanish criminal court. Many of the incidents we defend on the Costa Blanca start in the nightlife areas, which is why we keep a dedicated page on criminal defence in Benidorm.
The line between a minor offence and years in prison is drawn by the injury and by the circumstances.
In brief. Defence and prosecution in Spanish assault cases: articles 147 to 150, self-defence, forensic reports and compensation. English-speaking criminal lawyers.
At a glance
Injury offences are set out in articles 147 to 156 of the Criminal Code, and the grading depends on the treatment the victim required and on how the injury was caused:
The distinction between article 147.1 and article 147.3 is decided by the forensic medical report, not by how serious the incident felt. Whether stitches, immobilisation or a course of physiotherapy amount to medical treatment is a genuinely contested question in Spanish case law, and it is often the whole case.
Article 20.4 provides a complete defence where there was an unlawful aggression, the means used to repel it were reasonably necessary, and there was no sufficient provocation by the defender. Where one of those elements is only partially present, article 21.1 allows an incomplete defence that reduces the penalty by one or two degrees, which frequently brings a sentence within the range that can be suspended.
In practice most of these files describe a mutual fight in which both participants are charged. That is where early work matters: identifying and securing witnesses before their memory fades, obtaining the CCTV from the venue or the street before it is overwritten, documenting the defendant own injuries with a medical report on the same day, and preserving messages that show who started the incident.
Intoxication is not a defence in itself, but article 21.2 recognises serious addiction as a mitigating circumstance and full intoxication can, exceptionally, exclude responsibility under article 20.2.
A conviction for injuries carries an obligation to compensate the victim, and in practice that figure is often more significant to the client than the criminal penalty. Spanish courts quantify personal injury by reference to the scale used for traffic accidents, taking into account days of recovery, whether they were of restricted activity, and any permanent sequelae.
Paying compensation before trial is not an admission that ends the case. Under article 21.5 it is a mitigating circumstance for repairing the damage, and it can be the decisive factor in obtaining a reduced sentence or in persuading the prosecutor to accept a negotiated outcome. Timing matters: it must be done before the trial hearing begins.
Victims can appear in the proceedings as a private prosecution, which allows independent access to the file, the right to propose evidence and the ability to argue for a different classification of the offence and for full compensation. Relying on the public prosecutor alone means accepting whatever position that office takes.
Practical steps in the first days are attending a public health centre so that the injury is recorded in an official report, returning for review if symptoms persist so that the recovery period is documented, photographing the injuries, and identifying witnesses. The strength of a victim claim in Spain is almost always decided by the quality of the medical documentation.
Articles 147 and following of the Criminal Code punish causing another person an injury to their physical integrity or to their physical or mental health. The penalty depends on the seriousness of the injury and the means used, with aggravated forms where weapons or dangerous instruments are employed, where there is particular cruelty, or where the victim is a vulnerable person.
The precise classification, from a minor injury to a serious one, has a decisive effect on the sentence, which is why the medical assessment of the injury is so important.
The defence carefully assesses the possible existence of self-defence, necessity or consent, as well as the distinction between intent and negligence. The proportionality of the response and the reconstruction of how the incident unfolded are frequently decisive for the outcome.
In altercations between two people, establishing who initiated the aggression and how the other reacted often determines whether there is any criminal liability at all.
We examine the medical and forensic evidence on the real extent of the injuries, the witness evidence and the reconstruction of the facts, since the classification and the sentence depend directly on these elements.
We assess the repair of the harm and any settlement, which can operate as a significant mitigating factor and, in the lesser offences, open the way to alternatives to a criminal record.
We act for both injured parties and accused persons, building the case on the objective evidence rather than on the emotion that these incidents naturally generate.
Where appropriate we pursue an agreed resolution that repairs the harm and limits the consequences, and where the facts are contested we prepare the case fully for trial.
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