You lost in court: can you appeal in Spain?

Terms used

• Procurador — The procurador is the court representative who files documents and receives notices for you, working alongside your lawyer.
• Recurso de apelación — The recurso de apelación is the appeal of a first-instance judgment to a higher court.
• Audiencia Provincial — The Audiencia Provincial is the provincial court that hears appeals against first-instance civil judgments.
• Impugnación — The impugnación is the other party's opposition to your appeal or their own cross-appeal.
• Justicia gratuita — Justicia gratuita is free legal aid for people with limited means, including exemption from the appeal deposit.
• Casación — Casación is a limited appeal to the Supreme Court against certain Audiencia Provincial judgments.
• Interés casacional — Interés casacional means the case raises a legal question, such as conflicting case law, that the Supreme Court should settle.

Key rules

• Deadline: You have 20 working days from the day after notification to file your appeal.
• Deposit: A civil appeal needs a deposit of 50 euros unless you are exempt, for example through legal aid.
• Missing deposit: If the deposit is not fixed within 2 days of the court's warning, the appeal is rejected and the judgment is final.
• Supreme Court: Casación is open only in narrow cases, such as claims above 600,000 euros or interés casacional.

Can you appeal?

Yes, in most civil cases. A first-instance judgment can normally be appealed (recurso de apelación) to the Audiencia Provincial. A second appeal to the Supreme Court is possible only in limited cases.

How long do you have?

You have 20 working days from the day after you are notified of the judgment. Weekends and holidays do not count. Do not wait: tell your lawyer the day you receive the notice. A missed deadline makes the judgment final.

How to file

• You file a written brief with the same court that issued the judgment, not with the appeal court.
• A lawyer and a procurador must file it for you. You cannot do it alone. It is usually sent through the court's electronic system.
• The brief says which parts of the judgment you challenge and why.
• The court then sends the case to the Audiencia Provincial. The other side can oppose your appeal or file its own cross-appeal (impugnación) within 10 days of being told about your appeal.

The deposit

A civil appeal needs a deposit of 50 euros, paid into the court's consignment account when you file. You are exempt if you have the right to free legal aid (justicia gratuita). Public bodies and the Public Prosecutor are also exempt.

If you forget the deposit, the court gives you 2 days to fix it. If you do not, the appeal is rejected and the judgment becomes firm.

What the appeal can cover

The Audiencia Provincial can review a full second round. You can challenge:

• mistakes in how the judge assessed the facts and evidence;
• mistakes in applying the law;
• procedural errors by the first court. Raise these at the time if you could.

New evidence is limited. You may add documents you could not provide earlier, evidence that was wrongly rejected after you properly asked for it, and evidence of relevant facts that arose later or that you did not know about.

Which court decides

Judgments from the first-instance courts and the commercial (mercantile) courts go to the Audiencia Provincial. Judgments from the small local courts (Juzgados de Paz) are appealed to the first-instance court in the cases the law provides.

Going further: casación

The Supreme Court hears a casación appeal against an Audiencia Provincial judgment only in narrow cases:

• the case concerns protection of civil rights;
• the claim is above 600,000 euros;
• the case has interés casacional, for example the judgment conflicts with Supreme Court case law, or provincial courts decide the issue differently.

Cases decided in a simplified procedure by amount (juicio verbal) can reach the Supreme Court only through interés casacional. Where regional civil law is involved, the regional high court decides instead. Procedural complaints that used to have a separate route now go through casación under a 2025 reform, with transitional rules. Ask your lawyer which rules apply to your judgment.

The timeline, document list and questions below cover the steps in more detail.

Timeline and deadlines

• You are notified of the judgment; the deadline starts the next day: the day you are notified

• File the appeal brief with the court that issued the judgment, through your lawyer and procurador: within 20 working days, counted from the day after notification

• Pay the appeal deposit into the court's consignment account, unless you are exempt: when you file the appeal

• Correct the missing deposit, otherwise the appeal is inadmissible and the judgment becomes firm: within 2 days of the court's notice

• The other party can oppose your appeal or cross-appeal (impugnación): within 10 days of being notified of the appeal

• The court sends the case to the Audiencia Provincial, which decides the appeal: after the other side's reply

Documents you need

• Written appeal brief, prepared by your lawyer and procurador, stating the parts of the judgment you challenge and the grounds. It is filed with the court that issued the judgment.

• Payment of the appeal deposit into the court's consignment account, made when you file. The amount is set out in the deposit section of this article.

• Proof that you have the right to free legal aid (justicia gratuita), if you are claiming exemption from the deposit.

• New documents that you could not provide earlier, if you want to add them to the appeal.

Frequently asked questions

Which court decides my appeal of a first-instance judgment?

The Audiencia Provincial, in its civil section, decides appeals against judgments of the Juzgados de Primera Instancia and the mercantile courts. In some provinces, mercantile appeals go to sections specialised in commercial matters. Judgments of a Juzgado de Paz are appealed to the Juzgado de Primera Instancia in the cases the law provides.

Can I present new evidence in my appeal?

Yes, but only in limited cases: documents you could not provide earlier, evidence you asked for properly that the first court wrongly rejected, and evidence about facts that arose later or that you did not know about. Outside those cases, the appeal is decided on the evidence already in the file.

What can I challenge in a civil appeal?

You can challenge mistakes in how the court assessed the facts and evidence, mistakes in applying the law, and procedural errors. If you spotted a procedural error during the first-instance case, raise it at that moment, because you are expected to have objected if you could.

Can I go to the Supreme Court after losing before the Audiencia Provincial?

Only in limited cases: the Audiencia judgment must have ended the appeal and the case must involve civil rights protection, a claim above 600,000 euros, or interés casacional (a conflict with Supreme Court case law, conflicting provincial decisions, or a rule in force for less than five years). Cases decided as a juicio verbal by amount qualify only through interés casacional.

Do I need a lawyer to file the appeal?

Yes, the appeal is filed by a lawyer and a procurador (a court representative). They submit a written brief to the court that issued the judgment, usually through the LexNET electronic system, stating what you challenge and why.