Criminal defence throughout Spain · offices in Madrid and Alicante
Conditional threats, coercion, harassment and stalking, increasingly channelled through messaging apps and social media: expert preservation of the evidence and technical defence.
In brief. Not every intimidating phrase is an offence. Case law requires seriousness, persistence and credibility of the harm announced. Today most of these cases rest on digital messages whose forensic authentication and full context decide the outcome.
Proceedings for threats and coercion share a single requirement: to place every expression in its precise technical context. Not every intimidating phrase amounts to an offence; case law demands seriousness, persistence and credibility of the harm announced, weighing the context, the prior relationship between the parties and the reaction of the alleged victim.
Today most of these cases rest on messaging apps and social media: screenshots that must be authenticated by expert examination, and full conversations that frequently qualify, or refute, the initial account. That contextual and forensic analysis is what separates a conviction from a dismissal. For that reason we combine criminal defence with our own digital forensic examination in every matter.
| Offence | Article | Penalty framework | Key aggravating factor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conditional threats (criminal harm) | 169.1º | 1 – 5 years | Condition achieved · in writing |
| Unconditional threats | 169.2º | 6 months – 2 years | Seriousness of the harm announced |
| Blackmail | 171.2 | 2 – 4 years | Disclosure of a prosecutable offence |
| Coercion | 172 | 6 months – 3 years | Housing: upper half of the range |
| Harassment (stalking) | 172 ter | 3 months – 2 years | Vulnerable victim or partner |
| Degrading treatment | 173.1 | 6 months – 2 years | Workplace or property harassment |
| Extortion | 243 | 1 – 5 years | Act of financial disposal achieved |
| Legal person | 31 bis | Fine · suspension · dissolution | Absence of a compliance programme |
Penalty ranges are indicative and set out the ordinary framework; the sentence actually imposed depends on the degree of completion, aggravating and mitigating circumstances and the specific facts of each case.
The evidence in threats and coercion is, today, essentially digital: WhatsApp, social media, e-mails and audio. Its expert authentication and its full context decide the case. For that reason we apply LIWARD, Legal Intelligence Warfare for Defense, our own methodology, which integrates legal intelligence, case-law analytics, financial and accounting analysis and e-forensics into a single procedural strategy. That is what distinguishes us from conventional criminal defence.
Companies suffering extortion, threats against directors or harassment campaigns: a coordinated criminal-law response.
Directors and professionals threatened or reported in corporate, employment or commercial disputes.
Those investigated over messages or arguments: full contextualisation of the conversation and defence against instrumental complaints.
Victims of threats, harassment or extortion: preservation of evidence, protection measures and private prosecution.
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Criminal defence in English before the courts of Alicante and the rest of Spain, for residents and for visitors who have flown home.