A posting by Jose M. S. Alfonso on a previous topic says that the Spanish Law Profession is totally trustworthy and mentions that whilst there are rogue lawyers, there are similar in the UK and he quotes a newspaper article.

However in the expeperiences of many on this site, there appears to be far more problems encountered in Spain with lawyers who are recommended by Estate Agents.

My point in reply to Jose is this, in the Uk action is taken by the Law Society about the occasional rogue lawyer and they are barred from practice, UNLIKE in Spain where these lawyers are still able to operate it seems with impunity.

Take the cases of the 3 oft recommended lawyers by Ocean Estates who are still in practice sometimes with a new name!

I was going to reply to Joses post in the same vain as yourself Paul.( but I did not want to offend, as I have done before on this topic. I respect Jose.) Our Lawyers in the UK are regulated, in the same way as Chartered Accountants are. ( I presume all Accountants have a governing body) They would only be unscrupulous the once, in the UK ! We would not have been so badly treated by a UK lawyer as we have by our former Spanish lawyers. They would not get away with it. I don't ever recall anyone asking recommendations for a trustworthy lawyer in the UK. It is taken for granted that they are all OK.

The problem with the bad lawyers in Spain is as you say Paul, they continue to practice under a new name, as is the case of "our friends" in Marbella. Hopefully they are soon to get their comeuppence!

I presume the article in the Independent 21st August entitled 'I'd heard all the horror stories about solicitors' was the one to which Jose M. S. Alfonso was referring. If you read the article nobody was accusing UK solicitors of acting negligently, dishonestly or fraudulently just of ‘delays in the legal process’. If solicitors in the UK acted as do many Spanish lawyers they would soon find them selves in trouble with the law society.
Whilst we are quoting UK newspapers an interesting comment from this week’s Mail on Sunday property section‘99% of Spanish lawyers give the rest a bad name’ There is no smoke without fire. (I am sure Jose M. S. Alfonso falls into the smaller category.)

It's a well known fact that unfortunately 99% of lawyers in Spain make the rest look bad.

Thanks for the supportive replies, clearly things are much worse than I thought if 99% of Spanish Lawyers are giving the rest a bad name. In that case why does Senor Alfonso say that 'it is a respectable profession in Spain' or similar?

Since he is 'respectable' I wish he could explain why the rogue lawyers are still 'allowed' to practice, and why some are allowed to practice under 'new' names.

Even with all the horror stories about DVA and 'White Whale' involving marketing exclusively by Ocean Estates in some cases, and even with Del Valle in prison, his firm are still operating apparently as usual, and the Estate agent has not addressed this problem for it's clients and still operate as usual too.

All this and 'Land Grab' too!

UK lawyers, developers, and estate agents seem like Saints in comparison to those in Spain, and at least regulated!

Del Valle is now out of prison on bail of E600,000 which the judge would only accept in cash or bankers draft. So is the developer of our unfinished (after 4 years) complex.

This is just ridiculous. 99% of spanish lawyers are perfectly honorable. Im a spanish lawyer. Lawyers are one of the most respected professions in Spain year after year in statistc approval.

You should avoid lawyers which are directly "imposed" by real estate agencies because it is more likely than not that they'll have some vested interest or other.

If you have a huge british rogue estate agency on the costa del sol which always recommends the same three lawfirms just avois using their services. There are plenty of perfectly trustworthy lawyers on the costa, you just aren't looking in the right place.

Interesting point Guest, so why don't the Spanish Gov't or regulatory bodies throw out the huge British rogue estate agent (Awful Estates) and a few others guilty of deception?

Why are they continually able to get away with things?

I hope the Spanish Lawyer will answer you Paul. He is in a position to voice the concerns of so many British people, to the powers that be in the Spanish legal system. After all, Spain gets a massive income from us.

can anyone tell me how to make a complaint about a Spanish lawyer. The law society doesnt seem to answer complaints in English.

I have spent 8 years trying to get legal permissions recognised to sell my mothers hioliday flat in Spain. The inintial difficulties were with my family lawyer in the uk, who persistently shelved the problem, despite reassurances. The flat is now finally sold- but in three months my lawyer, despite promises has yet to release the money. Other then that the problems were just horrendous

All complaints reagarding spanish lawyers in the costa del sol should be adressed to the Colegio Oficial de Abogados de Málaga.

We have a profesional insurance for malpractice of up to E 300K or GBP 450.

Web:
http://www.icamalaga.es/

I can tell you that in my lawfirm we do a detailed breakdown of all costs involved routinely, the client doesn't even have to ask for it.

Under Law 57/68 all downpayments you make before completion are guaranteed by means of a bank guarantee or insurance company. Your lawyer must ask for this, and this is done after the signing of the contrato de arras (deposit contract) and private contract and ALWAYS before completion. It's only a simple paper, nothing fancy and is valid for a certain timeline and only for a given amount. Pester your lawyers until you/they have it and ask them to fax a copy over to you If neccesary.

If you have complaints regarding any spanish lawyer, do not hesitate in contacting the ICAM. If you have any queries I'll answer them in these forums.

E300k that's GBP 200K, I apologise for my mistake.

Thanks, Davan.

I was the seller on behalf of my mum who has dementia. My solicitor is still holding the 70 pr cent of the money from the sale- and that is possibly the least of my difficulties with this solicitor.

Does the website you gave cover the Alicante area too- I had an adress in Alicante but they dont answer emails in english and put the phone down when you ring up and ask for an english speaker

I just feel absolutely powerless

Sorry that should have read Drakan!

Albeit Guest, the real estate is in Alicante, you must contact the Colegio de Abogados from that region, not the ICAM from Málaga, the Colegio de Abogados have power on their respective regions or "provincias".

Web and phone number of Alicantes ICA:

http://www.icali.es/