Lawyer for detainees 24 hours a day in Madrid

Short answer. We assist detained persons in the city of Madrid and throughout the region twenty-four hours a day, at National Police stations, Guardia Civil posts and the duty service of the Tribunal de Instancia. The law requires the appointed lawyer to attend within a maximum of three hours and limits police custody to seventy-two hours. Until the lawyer is present and has read the police report, the detained person should not make a statement. Emergency telephone: 669 30 21 13.

People searching for a lawyer for a detainee in Madrid usually do so from a police station, from the waiting room of a duty court or from home, after a call they did not expect. This page explains what will happen in the following hours, what rights the detained person has and what exactly the lawyer does, under Article 520 of the Criminal Procedure Act and the practice of the duty services of the capital.

Where arrests take place in Madrid and where the detainee is taken

In the city of Madrid most arrests are made by the National Police, which holds the detainee at the district police station or at the central premises of the unit preparing the report. The Municipal Police intervenes in arrests in flagrante delicto and hands the detainee over to the National Police. In the municipalities of the region, competence is shared between the National Police and the Guardia Civil according to the area. The detainee remains at the police station until released or brought before the court, which in the capital means the Investigation Section on duty of the Tribunal de Instancia de Madrid and, in the other judicial districts, the duty section of each of them.

Two important exceptions. If the arrest is based on a European Arrest Warrant, the detainee is brought before the Central Investigating Judge of the Audiencia Nacional within a maximum of seventy-two hours (Article 50 of Law 23/2014). If it is based on a request for provisional arrest with a view to extradition, before the Central Investigating Court on duty within no more than twenty-four hours (Article 8 of Law 4/1985).

The rights of the detained person

Article 520.2 requires the detainee to be informed in writing, in simple language and in a language they understand, of the facts attributed to them, the reasons for the arrest and their rights: to remain silent, not to answer some questions or to make a statement only before the judge; not to testify against themselves or confess guilt; to appoint a lawyer and be assisted by them without undue delay; to access the elements of the proceedings essential to challenge the arrest; to have a relative informed of the deprivation of liberty and the place of custody; to communicate by telephone with a third party; to be assisted free of charge by an interpreter; and to be examined by the forensic doctor. A foreign national also has the right to have their consulate notified and to receive its visit.

Appointing the lawyer and the three-hour limit

The detainee freely appoints a lawyer and no authority or officer may recommend one (Article 520.5). The police immediately inform the Madrid Bar Association of the name of the lawyer appointed or of the request for a duty lawyer; the appointed lawyer must attend as quickly as possible and in any case within three hours of receiving the assignment, failing which the Bar appoints a duty lawyer. It is common for the family to contact the firm before the detainee has been able to appoint anyone: in that case the lawyer contacts the police station and the detainee confirms the appointment. The lawyer of choice may replace at any time the duty lawyer who intervened earlier.

What the lawyer does at the police station

Under Article 520.6, assistance consists of requesting that the detainee be informed of their rights and that a medical examination be carried out where appropriate; taking part in the statement, identification and reconstruction procedures; asking for any incident to be recorded in the minutes; informing the detainee of the consequences of consenting or not to the procedures proposed; and interviewing them in private, even before the statement is taken. In practice, the decision the lawyer helps to take at the police station is the most important of the whole proceedings: to make a statement or to exercise the right to remain silent and reserve the statement for the court, when the complete file will be known. In the vast majority of cases, subject to exceptions assessed one by one, the recommendation is not to make a statement at the police station.

The seventy-two-hour limit and habeas corpus

Police custody may not last longer than strictly necessary for the enquiries and, in any event, within seventy-two hours the detainee must be released or brought before the court (Article 520.1). If the limit is exceeded, if the arrest was made without the legal grounds or the required formalities, or if the rights of the detainee are not respected, Organic Law 6/1984 allows an application for habeas corpus to obtain their immediate presentation before the judicial authority, which rules on the lawfulness of the deprivation of liberty.

The hearing before the duty court and pre-trial detention

Once the detainee is brought before the court, the judge, unless ordering release without bail, convenes as soon as possible and within the following seventy-two hours the hearing under Article 505 of the Criminal Procedure Act, at which the prosecutor or the accusations may request pre-trial detention or release on bail. The investigated person appears with their lawyer, makes submissions and proposes evidence. Pre-trial detention requires, under Article 503, that the offence carry a maximum penalty of two years or more, or less where there are unexpired records for an intentional offence; that there be sufficient grounds to believe the investigated person responsible; and that detention pursue a legitimate purpose, such as averting the risk of flight, assessed in the light of the nature of the facts, the severity of the penalty and the family, employment and financial situation. Article 502.2 adds that it is only appropriate when objectively necessary and no less burdensome measures exist. A stable address, employment and documented family ties are the arguments that carry most weight, which is why we ask the family to gather them while the detainee is at the police station.

Fast-track trial at the duty service itself

Where the offence is punishable with up to five years and there is flagrancy or another of the circumstances of Article 795, the case may follow the fast-track procedure and be resolved at the duty court itself. Article 801 allows a plea agreement with a one-third reduction of the penalty when the penalty requested does not exceed three years and, once reduced, two. It is a decision to be taken with the police report read and with the advice of someone who knows the practice of the courts of the capital, not under the pressure of the moment.

Legal basis

Article 520 of the Criminal Procedure Act: rights of the detainee, written information, free choice of lawyer, three-hour limit for their attendance, content of legal assistance and seventy-two-hour limit. Articles 502, 503 and 505: pre-trial detention and hearing. Articles 795 and 801: fast-track trial and plea agreement at the duty court. Organic Law 6/1984 on habeas corpus. Article 50 of Law 23/2014 and Article 8 of Law 4/1985: presentation before the court in European Arrest Warrant and extradition cases. Source: consolidated texts published by the Official State Gazette, version in force on 24 September 2026.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take for the lawyer to reach a police station in Madrid?

The law sets a maximum of three hours from the moment the Madrid Bar Association transmits the assignment (Article 520.5 of the Criminal Procedure Act). We attend immediately at any police station or Guardia Civil post in the Madrid region, twenty-four hours a day.

Should the detainee make a statement at the police station?

As a rule, no. The detainee has the right to remain silent and to make a statement only before the judge (Article 520.2.a). At the police station the complete file is not known, and whatever is said is documented and conditions the whole investigation. Exceptions are assessed case by case with the lawyer.

How long can police custody last?

The time strictly necessary for the enquiries and, in any event, a maximum of seventy-two hours, after which the detainee must be released or brought before the court (Article 520.1). If the limit is exceeded, habeas corpus under Organic Law 6/1984 is available.

Can the family appoint a lawyer for the detainee?

The appointment belongs to the detainee, but the family may contact the lawyer, who gets in touch with the police station; the detainee then confirms the appointment. No authority may recommend a lawyer.

What happens after the police station?

The detainee is brought before the duty court, which decides on release or convenes the hearing under Article 505 to rule on pre-trial detention or release on bail. In less serious and flagrant offences, the case may proceed as a fast-track trial and be resolved at the same duty service.

Related guides

• 24-hour assistance to detainees
• Article 520 of the Criminal Procedure Act
• Criminal defence lawyer in Madrid
• Criminal Procedure Act by article
• Contact the firm

This article is informative in nature and does not constitute legal advice. For a specific case, consult a lawyer.