Do you have to try settlement (MASC) before suing in Spain?

Terms used

• MASC — MASC is a method of settling a dispute, such as mediation or negotiation, that you must try before many civil claims.
• Demanda — The demanda is the written claim you file to start a civil lawsuit.
• Monitorio — The monitorio is a fast court procedure to claim an undisputed money debt through a payment order.
• Burofax — A burofax is a postal service that proves the content, date and delivery of a message.
• Acta — The acta is the official final record of a mediation or conciliation.
• Costas — Costas are the court costs, including lawyers' fees, that the court may order one side to pay.

Key rules

• Duty: Most civil and commercial claims on rights the parties can freely dispose of need a documented attempt at settlement before you file, for claims filed after 3 April 2025.
• Proof: Attach proof of the attempt to your claim, or the court may not admit it.
• Costs: Refusing to engage or acting in bad faith can cost you, even if you win.
• Time limits: A proven proposal suspends limitation periods from the day you send it.

Do you have to try settlement first?

Yes, for most civil and commercial claims. If your claim is about a right the parties can freely dispose of, and it is mainly about money or property, you must make a documented attempt to settle before you file. This applies to claims filed after 3 April 2025. The Spanish name for the attempt is MASC.

If you file without proof of the attempt, the court may refuse to admit your claim. Attach the proof to your demanda.

When the rule does not apply

Some matters are exempt. The main ones are:

• Payment orders (monitorio) and the juicio cambiario, a fast court route for claims on bills of exchange and similar instruments.
• Family matters, filiation and support for people with disabilities.
• Protection of fundamental rights.
• Insolvency.
• Claims where the Administration or a public body is a party, except where the law allows.
• Labour, criminal and administrative-court matters, which are outside the rule altogether.
• Requests for urgent court measures, such as medidas cautelares or diligencias preliminares. You can ask for these without a prior attempt.

The list is long and technical, so check borderline cases with a lawyer before you file.

Consumer claims against a business are not exempt as such. Special protections apply, though. A consumer cannot be forced into a settlement procedure.

What counts as a valid attempt

Any genuine effort to settle can count, if you can prove it. The accepted routes are:

• Mediation with a registered mediator.
• Conciliation before a notary, a registrar or a court clerk.
• An independent expert's opinion.
• A confidential binding offer.
• Direct negotiation between you, or your lawyers, and the other side. This must be documented.

Whichever you choose, act in good faith. Your proposal should set out the claim, the amount and the facts, so the court can see that the dispute matches your lawsuit.

How to prove it

Send your proposal in a way that shows its content, date and receipt, such as a burofax, a notarial communication or a certified email. Then keep what fits your case:

• The final record (acta) of a mediation or conciliation.
• A certificate that the other side did not reply or did not attend.
• For negotiation between lawyers, a document recording the proposals and the result, with a certificate from the lawyer.

Courts may ask for different amounts of evidence, so keep everything.

Effect on costs

Your conduct in this phase can cost you money. A party who refuses to take part without good reason, or acts in bad faith, may be ordered to pay court costs (costas). That can happen even to the party who wins the case. If you made a real attempt and the other side did not engage, their refusal can count against them. The court has discretion, so the outcome depends on the facts.

Effect on time limits

Sending a proposal suspends the limitation and expiry periods from the date you send it, or from the date you file a mediation request. The suspension lasts until a settlement, a signed final record, or the end of the attempt, including when the other side does not reply. Time then resumes from where it stopped. You need proof of the proposal to rely on this, so keep the date you sent it.

The steps, documents and checklist below show how to do this in order.

Choosing between options

How should you handle the settlement attempt, given the risk to costs?

• Make a genuine, documented attempt: Your claim is covered by the rule. Engaging in good faith protects you from a costs order for obstructive conduct, even if you win.

• Ask the other side to engage when they stall: You made a real attempt and the other side did not engage reasonably. Their refusal can count against them when the court decides costs.

• Refuse or ignore a proposal you receive: Only if you have a good reason. Refusing without justification, or acting in bad faith, can lead to an order to pay costs.

Take part in good faith and keep proof: a party who refuses without justification or abuses the process may pay costs, even after winning.

Step-by-step: trying to settle before you file a claim

From evidence to filing

• Gather your evidence: contract or order, invoices, proof of payment, messages and emails (keep screenshots), delivery notes, photos, expert reports, and a calculation of the amount claimed: Before you contact the other side

• Note the debtor's identity and address details, and the key dates, because interest and time limits depend on them: Before you send anything

• Send a formal demand or a written settlement offer that you can prove you sent and they received: After your evidence is ready

• Make a documented settlement attempt: direct negotiation between you or your lawyers, mediation, conciliation, an independent expert opinion or a confidential binding offer. A formal demand can count if it is a documented proposal giving a reasonable time to reply: Right after the demand, or as the demand itself

• Wait for the other side's answer or for the attempt to end. A mediation generally lasts two months at most, extendable by one more month: Until they reply or the attempt ends

• If the other side stays silent, count 30 business days from the day they received your proposal; then the attempt counts as failed: 30 business days after they receive your proposal

• File your claim in court with proof of the attempt attached. The same attempt works for a claim on the same subject and between the same parties: After the attempt has failed or the waiting period has ended

• Plan for court time: a payment order (monitorio) can take weeks to a few months if the debtor does not object, a juicio verbal about 6 to 12 months, a juicio ordinario about 12 to 24 months: After filing

Documents you need

• The final record (acta) of a mediation or conciliation, issued by the mediator, notary, registrar or court clerk who handled it.

• A certificate that the other side did not respond or did not attend, used when the attempt failed because of their silence.

• Proof that you sent your proposal and that it was received, such as a burofax, notarial communication or certified email showing content, date and receipt. The proposal should set out the claim, the amount and the facts so it matches your lawsuit.

• For negotiation between lawyers, a document recording the proposals and the result, with a certificate from the lawyer.

Checklist

• Check that your claim is civil or commercial, concerns a right the parties can freely dispose of, and is filed after 3 April 2025.

• Check whether your case falls under an exception, such as a payment order, family matters, insolvency, fundamental rights, urgent court measures, or a claim involving a public body.

• Choose a valid method: mediation, conciliation, an independent expert opinion, a confidential binding offer, or documented negotiation between you or your lawyers.

• Make the attempt in good faith, with a proposal that sets out the claim, the amount and the facts.

• Keep the final record, the certificate of no reply, or the proof of delivery of your proposal.

• Attach that proof to your claim when you file, so the court admits it.

• Keep the date you sent the proposal, because it is the date your time limits are suspended.

Frequently asked questions

Can I ask the court for urgent measures without trying settlement first?

Yes, requests for urgent measures such as medidas cautelares or diligencias preliminares can be made without a prior settlement attempt. The same goes for a payment order (monitorio). Family matters and labour or criminal cases are also outside the rule.

Does a consumer claim against a business need a settlement attempt?

Consumer claims against professionals are not exempt as such, but special rules protect the consumer. A consumer cannot be forced into a settlement attempt, so check what applies to your case with a consumer office or lawyer.

Can I lose the costs even if I win the case?

Yes, a winning party can still be ordered to pay costs (costas) if it refused to take part in settlement without good reason or acted in bad faith. The court has discretion and looks at how each side behaved. The same conduct can count against a defendant who did not engage.

Does sending a settlement proposal stop my time limit running?

Yes, sending a proposal, or filing a mediation request, suspends the limitation and caducidad periods from that date. Time resumes where it stopped once a settlement or final record is signed or the attempt ends. You need proof of the proposal or request to rely on this.