Checking date: 04/05/2020


Course: 2019/2020

The spanish legal system
(13570)
Bachelor in Law (2008 Study Plan) (Plan: 149 - Estudio: 206)


Coordinating teacher: FIODOROVA , ANNA

Department assigned to the subject: Criminal Law, Procedural Law and History Law Department

Type: Compulsory
ECTS Credits: 5.0 ECTS

Course:
Semester:




Requirements (Subjects that are assumed to be known)
The subject of "Spanish Judicial System" is the first contact that the student of the Bachelor in Law has with the area of the Procedural & Litigation Law. Therefore no prior course is necessary.
Competences and skills that the student will acquire in the subject of Spanish Judicial System: A. KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF: - The existence of different methods of solving legal conflicts. - What is procedural law and what are its features. - What is jurisdiction and what are the functions of the jurisdiction. - The meaning and implications of jurisdiction exclusivity. - The model of the judiciary, institutions of its government, their composition and powers. - The Spanish judicial organization and the distribution of competences between courts. - The status and functions of the jurisdictional staff and other entities of Justice Administration. - The functions of other main figures of the process: prosecutors, lawyers, etc. And the access to these careers. - The content of the effective judicial protection. - Conditions for granting of free legal aid. - The process: concept, structure, types and principles. - The procedural acts: concept, classes, characteristics and requirements. - Cost of Justice: who and how has to paid them. B.CAPACITY: - Distinguish branches of procedural law. - Identify sources and define the content of the basic procedural laws. - Define the scope and organisation of the judiciary. - Restore the basic limits of the Spanish jurisdiction. - Determine the competent body to deal with different cases. - Legal arguments and exposing the views orally or in written. - Identify, find and use different legal instruments. - Work in groups, carry out and present a collective and coordinated work. C. ATTITUDE: - Appreciate the importance of the Justice administration as a public service. - Critically analyse different institutions that have been studied. - Link studied contents in organised and coherent manner. - Compare obtained information in order to form a personal opinion.
Description of contents: programme
Lesson 1: Jurisdiction. 1. Legal disputes and dispute resolutions. 2. Judicial power and functions. Lesson 2: Judicial Power. 1. Unity. 2. Exclusivity. 3. Independence and self-government. Lesson 3. Jurisdictional orders and court system. Extension and limits of jurisdiction. Lesson 4: Fundamental Rights and Jurisdiction. 1. Right to effective judicial protection. A. Action. Action and jurisdiction. B. From action to the right to effective judicial protection. C. The core elements of the concept of effective judicial protection. 2. The right to a trial with full guarantees: A. In the criminal process. B. In other jurisdictional orders. Lesson 5: Judicial process. 1. Concept and basic structure of the process. A. The initiating on a request of a party. B. Basic acts of the process. C. Appeal system. 2. Principles of the process. A. Accusatory and official. B. Dispositive and contribution of party. C. Duality, contradiction and equality. D. Free and pre-established evidence. 3. Principles of the procedure. A. Orality. B. Immediacy. C. Concentration. D. Publicity. E. Time-limit for acts. 4. Classes of process. Lesson 6: Procedural acts. Judicial cooperation and assistance to Courts. 1. Procedural acts. A. Concept and characteristics. B. Classes. C. Requirements. D. The invalidity of the procedural acts. 2. The communications in process. A. Practice of communications. B. Types of communications. 3. Judicial cooperation. A. Types of judicial cooperation. B. Cooperation in the EU. 4. The judicial assistance. A. Concept. B. Types of assistance: a. Internal b. International. Lesson 7: Judges and Senior Judges. 1. Constitutional guarantees. A. Concept. B. The independence. C. The tenure of the office. D. The responsibility. E. the Submission to the law. 2. Statute. A. Concept and regulation. B. Application. C. Joining the service. D. Incapacities, incompatibilities and prohibitions. Lesson 8: Judicial office. 1. Judicial office. 2. Judicial clerks. 3. Personnel of the Judicial Administration. A. Procedural and Administrative Management. B. Procedural and Administrative Processing. C. Judicial assistance. 4. Other institutions at services of the Justice Administration. 5. Judicial Police. Lesson 9: Promoters of Justice. 1. Prosecutor´s Office. A. Concept and nature. B. Functions. C. Principles of organisation and functioning. 2. Lawyers and Legal Representatives. A. Nomination. B. System of access to the profession. C. State Representation and defence. 3. Free Legal Aid. A. Background. B. Scope. C. Requirements. D. Content of the right. E. Procedure. Lesson 10: Cost of Justice. 1. Public and private costs. 2. Costs and expenses. 3. State special responsibility for a proper functioning of Justice administration. A. Background. B. Degrees of the responsability.
Learning activities and methodology
The subject of Spanish Judicial System covers a semester of 12 weeks with three hours of classes per week spread over 1.5 hours of lecture and another 1.5 hours of practical classes. However this system could be slightly modified depending on the development of the classes and practical needs of each group. The lectures will be delivered in a large group and practical classes in small groups. A. Lectures The lectures will be given in large groups and will be devoted to the exposition of the fundamental concepts of the programme. Lectures will also be used to provide with the guiding thread and overall overview of the programme. B. Practice The practical classes will be held up in small groups and their contents will be as heterogeneous as possible, adapting to the particularities of the subject matter. Among the various activities scheduled (without the prejudice to the possible modifications depending on the development of the course) the following ones are foreseen: - Case-law exercises: the application of the positive law to real situations. - Analysis and review of case-law. - Preparation and presentation of certain topics. - Opinions about current news. - Discussion and debate on controversial legal issues. - Watching of recordings of different trials. - Complementary activity, likely a visit to a court or an institution (Justice, Supreme Court, Constitutional Court, CGPJ, Office, etc...) Individual and group tutorials: Each teacher will establish a weekly schedule for individual tutoring. The student can attend the tutorials for any questions, problems or issues that require the attention of a teacher of the subject. On the other hand, the teacher can establish during the semester up to 3 complementary collective tutorials that in any case are voluntary. The purpose of these tutorials will be the orientation of the student, the review or clarification of specific questions on the agenda of the subject, guide for the exam, etc. These tutorials can be carried out by other teacher than one that gives the classes to the group to which a student belongs. The tutorials can be under the responsible of: teachers of the groups, assistants or fellows of the Department. The sessions will be set depending on the needs at the time of the semester considered as most suitable.
Assessment System
  • % end-of-term-examination 50
  • % of continuous assessment (assigments, laboratory, practicals...) 50

Basic Bibliography
  • 1. MORENO CATENA, V.; CORTÉS DOMÍNGUEZ, V.. Introducción al Derecho procesal, 9ª ed.. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia. 2017
  • 2. MORENO CATENA, V. (Director). LÓPEZ JIMÉNEZ, R. (Coordinadora). Esquemas de Derecho procesal. Tomo. I: Esquemas de organización judicial: tribunales nacionales y supranacionales, 5ª ed. . Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia. 2018
  • 3. MONTERO AROCA, J. GOMEZ COLOMER, J.L. BARONA VILLAR, S. . Derecho jurisdiccional I. Parte general, 25ª ed.. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia. 2017
  • 4. DAMIAN MORENO, J. . Introducción al Sistema Judicial Español, 3ª ed.. Dykinson. 2013
  • 5. MORENO CATENA, V. (Director), AA.VV.. Manual de organización judicial, 4ª ed.. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia. 2010
Recursos electrónicosElectronic Resources *
Additional Bibliography
  • ASENCIO MELLADO, J. M.. Introducción al Derecho procesal, 6ª ed.. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia. 2015
  • DE LA OLIVA SANTOS, A.; DÍEZ-PICAZO, I.; VEGAS TORRES, J.. Derecho procesal: introducción, 3ª ed.. Ramón Areces, Madrid. 2004
  • RAMOS MENDÉZ, F.. El sistema procesal español, 10ª ed.. Atelier, Barcelona. 2016
  • VALENCIA MIRÓN, A. J.. Introducción al Derecho procesal, 12ª ed. . Comares, Granada. 2008
(*) Access to some electronic resources may be restricted to members of the university community and require validation through Campus Global. If you try to connect from outside of the University you will need to set up a VPN


The course syllabus may change due academic events or other reasons.