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Article 790 Spanish Criminal Procedure Act: Appeal Against Judgment in the Abbreviated Procedure
Quick answerArticle 790 of the Spanish Criminal Procedure Act governs the appeal against judgments of the Criminal Court to the Provincial Court. The appeal must be lodged within ten days of notification, and a party that has not appealed may join the appeal at the stage of written submissions.
Article 790 of the Criminal Procedure Act governs the appeal against the judgment of a criminal court. The appeal is lodged within ten days of notification, and the period is suspended if a copy of the recording of the sessions is requested within the first three days, which in practice is how the defence obtains the material needed to formulate the grounds. The article also imposes the requirement that decides most appeals: where the prosecution alleges error in the assessment of the evidence in order to overturn an acquittal or increase a sentence, it must demonstrate insufficiency or irrationality in the factual reasoning, a manifest departure from common experience, or the omission of any reasoning on relevant evidence.
Also cited as: article 790 Spanish Criminal Procedure Act · art. 790 LECrim · LECrim article 790 · artículo 790 de la Ley de Enjuiciamiento Criminal.
Wording of Article 790 of the Spanish Criminal Procedure Act
1. The judgment given by the criminal court is appealable to the corresponding Provincial Court, and that of the Central Criminal Court to the Criminal Division of the National Court. The appeal may be lodged by any of the parties within the ten days following notification of the judgment. During that period the file shall be available to the parties at the judicial office, and within three days of notification of the judgment they may request a copy of the media on which the sessions were recorded, with suspension of the period for lodging the appeal. The computation of the period shall resume once the copies requested have been delivered.
A party which has not appealed within that period may join the appeal at the stage of submissions provided for in paragraph 5, advancing such claims and grounds as it sees fit. In all cases that appeal shall be conditional on the appellant maintaining its own.
The other parties may contest the joinder within two days, once the transmission provided for in paragraph 6 has been effected.
2. The pleading formalising the appeal shall be filed before the body that gave the decision challenged, and shall set out, in order, the submissions as to breach of procedural rules and guarantees, error in the assessment of the evidence, or infringement of rules of law on which the challenge is based. The appellant must also designate an address for service in the place where the Provincial Court sits.
If the appeal seeks a declaration of nullity of the trial for breach of procedural rules or guarantees causing the appellant to be deprived of a proper defence, in terms such that it cannot be remedied at second instance, the legal or constitutional provisions considered to have been infringed shall be cited and the reasons for that deprivation shall be stated. It must also be shown that remedy of the defect or infringement was sought at first instance, save where it was committed at a time when the objection was already impossible.
Where the prosecution alleges error in the assessment of the evidence in order to seek the annulment of an acquittal or the aggravation of a conviction, it shall be necessary to establish the insufficiency or lack of rationality of the factual reasoning, the manifest departure from the maxims of experience, or the omission of any reasoning as to one or more of the items of evidence taken which might be relevant, or whose nullity has been improperly declared.
3. In the same pleading the appellant may request the taking of evidence which it was unable to propose at first instance, of evidence proposed and improperly refused, provided that a formal protest was made at the time, and of evidence admitted but not taken for reasons not attributable to the appellant.
4. On receipt of the pleading formalising the appeal, the judge shall admit the appeal if it meets the requirements. Where a remediable defect is found, the appellant shall be given a period of not more than three days to remedy it.
5. Once the appeal has been admitted, the judicial officer shall transmit the pleading formalising it to the other parties for a common period of ten days. Within that period the other parties must file their pleadings of submissions, in which the taking of evidence may be requested in the terms established in paragraph 3 and in which an address for service shall be designated.
6. Once the pleadings of submissions have been filed, or the period for doing so has expired, the officer shall, within the following two days, transmit each of them to the other parties and shall send the original file to the Provincial Court with all the pleadings filed.
Working translation prepared by Société Juridique from the consolidated Spanish text published by the Official State Gazette. It has no official status: the only authoritative version is the Spanish original, available at the Official State Gazette and reproduced verbatim in our Spanish-language entry for this provision. Source: Royal Decree of 14 September 1882 approving the Spanish Criminal Procedure Act.
Effect. The article governs procedure. Its effects are three: a ten-day period to lodge the appeal, suspended by a request for the recording made within three days; three admissible categories of ground, namely procedural breach, error in the assessment of the evidence and infringement of law; and a heightened requirement of reasoning where the prosecution appeals against an acquittal or seeks a heavier sentence.
Key facts
| Decisions open to appeal | Judgments of the Criminal Court, to the Provincial Court, and those of the Central Criminal Court, to the Criminal Chamber of the National High Court. |
|---|---|
| Time limit | Ten days from notification of the judgment. A party requesting copies of the hearing recordings within the following three days obtains a suspension of the period until they are delivered. |
| Standing | Any party. A party that has not appealed in time may join the appeal at the stage of written submissions. |
| Grounds | Breach of procedural rules and safeguards, error in the assessment of the evidence, or infringement of rules of law. |
| Limit on review of the facts | The appeal does not allow the assessment of oral evidence heard directly at trial to be revisited so as to worsen the defendant’s position without a fresh hearing. |
| Evidence on appeal | A party may request steps that could not be proposed at first instance, that were wrongly refused, or that were not taken for reasons beyond that party’s control. |
| Related provisions | Article 792, the appeal judgment; Article 847 and Article 849, access to cassation. |
Requirements and procedure
- A judgment of a criminal court or of the Central Criminal Court, and an appeal lodged within ten days of notification.
- A pleading filed before the court that gave the judgment, setting out the grounds in order and designating an address for service in the place where the Provincial Court sits.
- For a ground of nullity, that remedy of the defect was sought at first instance, unless that was impossible.
- For an appeal by the prosecution against an acquittal, proof of insufficiency or irrationality of the factual reasoning, of a manifest departure from common experience, or of the omission of any reasoning on relevant evidence.
Defence strategy
Requesting the recording to suspend the period. The request for a copy of the recording, made within three days, suspends the ten-day period until the copies are delivered. This is the single most useful procedural device in the article, because the grounds of appeal cannot properly be formulated from the written judgment alone: what the witnesses actually said, what objections were made and how they were ruled upon are on the recording. The request is made in writing and its delivery date recorded, since the computation depends on it.
Resisting a prosecution appeal against an acquittal. Where the prosecution appeals, the appellate court cannot simply prefer a different view of the evidence: the appellant must establish insufficiency, irrationality, a departure from common experience or an omission of reasoning. The respondent’s submissions concentrate on showing that the first-instance reasoning addressed each item of evidence and reached a conclusion within the range of rational assessment, which is ordinarily sufficient to defeat the appeal.
Grounds of nullity and the requirement of prior objection. A ground of nullity requires that the defect was objected to at first instance. This is why every refusal of evidence and every procedural irregularity must be met with a recorded protest at trial. Where no protest was made, the defence must establish that the objection was impossible at the time, which is a materially harder task and should not be relied upon.
Evidence on appeal. The third paragraph permits evidence that could not be proposed at first instance, evidence improperly refused where a protest was made, and evidence admitted but not taken for reasons outside the appellant’s control. The application is made in the pleading itself and must identify the evidence and its relevance precisely, since a general request is refused. This is the route by which a report obtained after trial, such as a definitive medical assessment, enters the appeal.
Points of application
Requesting the recordings suspends time. This is a valuable provision that is often overlooked. Asking for copies of the recordings within three days of notification suspends the period until they are handed over, allowing the appeal to be prepared with the trial in view.
Joining the appeal widens the debate. A party that did not appeal in time may join at the submissions stage, with the result that the appeal court also hears its claims. This is worth weighing where the other side’s appeal opens the way to revisiting unfavourable findings.
Limits on revisiting the facts. The appeal allows error in the assessment of evidence to be argued, but it does not permit the appeal court simply to substitute its own assessment of oral evidence heard directly at trial where that would harm the defendant, a requirement flowing from the right to a fair trial.
Defence in this area
If you or your company are facing proceedings in this area, the firm provides defence and prosecution in Alicante and Madrid, with 24-hour assistance to detained persons.
Are you under investigation or facing charges in Spain? Société Juridique acts for foreign nationals throughout Spain, with offices in Alicante and Madrid and a 24-hour custody line. +34 669 30 21 13 or enquire online.
- Article 847: appeal in cassation
- Appeals: frequently asked questions
- Spanish Criminal Procedure Act by article
- Spanish-language entry
This entry is provided for information only and does not constitute legal advice. The application of any provision depends on the circumstances of the individual case and requires examination of the case file by a qualified lawyer.
Last reviewed: 21 September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is the time limit for appealing a Criminal Court judgment?
Ten days from notification of the judgment. If copies of the hearing recordings are requested within the following three days, the period is suspended until they are delivered.
Which court hears the appeal?
The relevant Provincial Court where the judgment comes from the Criminal Court, and the Criminal Chamber of the National High Court where it comes from the Central Criminal Court.
Can a party that missed the deadline still appeal?
Yes, by joining the appeal at the submissions stage. A party that did not appeal in time may in that way put its own claims before the appeal court.
What grounds may be raised?
Breach of procedural rules and safeguards, error in the assessment of the evidence, and infringement of rules of law.
Can evidence be taken on appeal?
Yes, within limits: steps that could not be proposed at first instance, those wrongly refused, and those that were not taken for reasons beyond the control of the party proposing them.
Can the Provincial Court convict someone who was acquitted?
Not without further safeguards. Revisiting the assessment of oral evidence heard directly at trial to the defendant’s detriment requires that they be heard, under the right to a fair trial.
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