The Criminal Procedure Act is Spain's criminal procedure code. Enacted in 1882, it remains the statute governing the entire criminal process: from the first notice of a criminal act to the point at which a judgment becomes final and is executed. It has survived the nineteenth century, the Franco regime and democracy, not because it is perfect — it falls far short — but because comprehensive reforms have been successively postponed. Understanding the LECrim is essential for any company, executive or individual who may become involved in criminal proceedings as a suspect, accused, victim or witness. Corporate criminal compliance is the preventive tool to reduce that risk.
This guide analyses the LECrim as it stands in 2026: the structure of the process, stages, key articles and their practical significance for companies and individuals.
What is the LECrim and what is its history
The Royal Decree of 14 September 1882, which enacted the Criminal Procedure Act, was a milestone in the modernisation of Spanish procedural law: it replaced the purely inquisitorial process with a formally adversarial model, separating the investigating judge from the sentencing judge, with guarantees for the accused and orality at the hearing. Its model was the French Code d’Instruction Criminelle of 1808 and common law practice.
Since then, the LECrim has been reformed more than sixty times. The most transformative were LO 14/1983 (legal assistance to the detainee), Ley 38/2002 (fast-track trials), Ley 41/2015 (procedural acceleration and reform of provisional imprisonment) and, especially, LO 13/2015 (regulation of technological investigative measures: telephone interceptions, device access, image capture).
Structure of the LECrim: books and titles
The LECrim is structured in seven main books:
Book I: General provisions. Criminal jurisdiction, competence of courts and tribunals, capacity of the parties, rules on complaints and formal charges.
Book II: The sumario. Investigation under the ordinary procedure for serious offences. Governs investigative measures, detention, provisional imprisonment, home searches and the close of the investigation.
Book III: The oral hearing. The hearing stage in the ordinary procedure before the Supreme Court or the Audiencias. Provisional and final charges, taking of evidence, verdict and judgment.
Book IV: Special procedures. Popular jury, abbreviated procedure (preliminary proceedings, the most commonly used in practice), fast-track trials, jury trial procedure.
Book V: Appeals. Reform, appeal, criminal cassation and review.
Book VI: Procedure for minor offences. Currently with very limited application following the abolition of minor offences from the Criminal Code in 2015.
Book VII: Execution of judgments. Serving custodial sentences, enforcement of financial penalties, civil liability arising from the offence.
Phases of the ordinary criminal process
The complaint and the formal charge
Criminal proceedings may be initiated in several ways: by complaint (notice of the offence to the authorities, without needing to be a party), by formal private prosecution (formal charge submitted by those who will be a prosecution party) or by the Public Prosecutor or the judge of their own motion. The formal charge requires the involvement of a barrister and solicitor, and the charging party constitutes itself as a prosecution party from the outset, being able to participate in the investigation.
The investigation: sumario and preliminary proceedings
The investigation is the inquiry stage. Its objective is to determine whether an offence has been committed, identify those responsible and secure their persons and assets. The investigating judge directs this stage in the Spanish model, unlike other systems where the prosecutor investigates.
In the ordinary sumario (offences carrying a sentence exceeding 9 years), the investigation culminates in the order concluding the sumario, which opens the intermediate stage before the adjudicating court (Provincial Court or National Court).
In the preliminary proceedings of the abbreviated procedure (offences carrying a sentence of less than 9 years), the investigating judge concludes the investigation with the order opening the oral hearing, which remits the case to the Criminal Court or the Provincial Court depending on the sentence. The statutory investigation period is 6 months, extendable to 18 months in complex cases (art. 324 LECrim, 2020 reform).
Interim measures during the investigation
During the investigation, the judge may order personal interim measures (detention, provisional imprisonment, provisional release on charge, exclusion order) and patrimonial measures (asset attachment to secure financial liability). Provisional imprisonment is the most serious measure and is subject to strict proportionality and necessity requirements.
The intermediate stage
Between the close of the investigation and the oral hearing, the parties submit their indictment and defence submissions. It is in this stage that the prosecution specifies the facts and sentence sought, and where the defence may challenge the nullity of proceedings for formal defects or violation of fundamental rights.
The oral hearing
The oral hearing is the central stage of the process. It takes place in public sessions (with exceptions), with the mandatory presence of the accused and their defence lawyers. The prosecution and defence adduce the admitted evidence: witnesses, experts, documents, telephone interceptions. After the evidence, the parties deliver their final submissions. The court deliberates and delivers judgment.
Key LECrim articles for companies and executives
Art. 118: The right of defence from the very beginning
Art. 118 LECrim, as worded by LO 13/2015, is the first guarantee of the suspect. It provides that from the moment a person becomes the subject of police or judicial acts for their alleged participation in an offence, they have the right to be informed of the alleged facts, access the investigation file, appoint a lawyer of their choice, not to incriminate themselves and not to admit guilt, and to receive free interpreter assistance if they do not speak Spanish.
For an executive or company that receives a judicial notification or summons as a suspect, the first step is always to appoint a trusted lawyer. Giving a statement without prior legal advice is one of the most costly mistakes that can be made in criminal proceedings.
Art. 520: Rights of the detainee
Art. 520 LECrim constitutionally develops art. 17 CE for detention cases. The detainee has the right to know the facts for which they are detained and the rights available to them, to remain silent and not to make a statement, not to admit guilt, to appoint a lawyer and be assisted by them in police proceedings and before the judge, to have their detention notified to a family member or person of their choice, and to be examined by the forensic doctor.
The maximum period of police detention is 72 hours. If within that period the detainee is not released or brought before a judge, the detention is unlawful and generates liability for those maintaining it. In terrorism cases, art. 520 bis LECrim allows a judicial extension of up to 5 additional days.
Arts. 579 et seq.: Interception of communications
Arts. 579 to 588 octies LECrim, profoundly reformed by LO 13/2015, govern all technological investigative measures: postal and telegraph interception, interception of telephone and electronic communications, capture and recording of oral communications using electronic devices, use of electronic tracking and location devices, remote access to computer systems (judicial hacking), and controlled delivery.
All these measures require judicial authorisation by a reasoned order finding proportionality, necessity and sufficient indicia of criminality. Evidence obtained without the required judicial authorisation is null and void (art. 11.1 LOPJ) and may not be used in the proceedings.
Art. 786: Preliminary issues at the start of the oral hearing
Art. 786.2 LECrim allows the parties to raise, at the start of the oral hearing in the abbreviated procedure, a series of preliminary issues that may determine suspension or nullity of the process: lack of jurisdiction, violation of fundamental rights during the investigation, preliminary objections, nullity of proceedings or challenge of evidence on grounds of unlawfulness. This is the strategic procedural moment for the defence to seek exclusion of irregularly obtained evidence.
The abbreviated procedure: the standard route in practice
The abbreviated procedure (arts. 757-803 LECrim) is the procedure for the vast majority of criminal cases: all offences carrying a sentence of less than 9 years’ imprisonment. Its main features are:
Greater role for the Public Prosecutor. The prosecutor may conduct its own investigative measures before presenting the complaint or formal charge (arts. 773 and 771 LECrim), although in practice the investigating judge remains the director of the investigation.
Statutory investigation period. Since 2020, the ordinary period is 6 months from commencement, extendable to 18 months in complex cases. Once these periods expire, the parties may seek discontinuation.
Advance guilty plea. The guilty plea may be entered before the oral hearing (art. 784.3 LECrim), with the advantage of reducing the sentence by one third. This Spanish-style plea bargaining mechanism is increasingly used for economic and tax offences.
Appeals. Judgments of the Criminal Court are appealable to the Provincial Court. Provincial Court judgments may be taken to cassation before the Supreme Court. LO 41/2015 introduced a general second instance in criminal proceedings.
Fast-track trials: speed for flagrant offences
Fast-track trials (arts. 795-803 bis LECrim) are a special procedure for certain low-to-medium severity offences (maximum sentence of 5 years) that meet certain criteria: flagrancy, straightforward investigation, immediate identification of the perpetrator. The procedure is designed to be resolved within hours or days of arrest, with the duty court handling both investigation and hearing.
If the accused enters a guilty plea at the duty court with the sentence sought, art. 801 LECrim allows it to be reduced by one third and the sentence suspended if it does not exceed 2 years. This reduction for a guilty plea in fast-track trials is one of the clearest procedural incentives in the current LECrim.
The jury trial procedure
Ley Orgánica 5/1995 on the Popular Jury develops the constitutional mandate of art. 125 CE. The popular jury hears specific prescribed offences: premeditated homicide, threats, breaking and entering, infidelity in custody of documents, bribery, influence peddling, misappropriation, fraud and illegal levies, environmental offences, arson, and failure to render aid, among others. The jury is composed of 9 citizens and decides on guilt; the presiding magistrate delivers the sentence with the corresponding penalty.
Technological investigative measures after LO 13/2015
LO 13/2015 was the most significant reform of the LECrim on covert and technological investigative measures. It regulated for the first time with legal rigour remote access to computers and devices (art. 588 septies a LECrim), capture of oral communications (art. 588 quater LECrim) and the use of undercover online agents (art. 282 bis LECrim).
For companies, these rules have implications in two directions: as potential suspects (their internal communications, systems and devices may be subject to judicial search if authorised), and as victims (they may request these measures when they are victims of computer crimes, misappropriation of trade secrets or corporate espionage).
Criminal proceedings and corporate liability
Since LO 5/2010, legal persons are subjects of Spanish criminal proceedings. Art. 119 LECrim governs their participation: the legal person under investigation acts through a representative appointed by its bodies, assisted by a lawyer, with all the rights of individual defence.
When a company is under investigation, the criminal process overlaps with ordinary business activity and can have devastating effects on reputation, banking relationships and public contracts. An effective criminal compliance programme (art. 31 bis CP) not only reduces the probability of conviction: it also reduces the probability that the investigation reaches the oral hearing stage.
Appeals in criminal proceedings
The appeal chain in Spanish criminal proceedings is:
Recurso de reforma: Before the same court that issued the resolution. Time limit of 3 days for orders and directions (art. 222 LECrim). Used for interlocutory resolutions (refusal of investigative measures, interim measures).
Appeal: Against orders of the investigating judge before the Provincial Court; against judgments of the Criminal Court before the Provincial Court. The criminal appeal may review both facts and law (full second instance, since LO 41/2015).
Criminal cassation: Before Criminal Chamber II of the Supreme Court, for infringement of law (art. 849.1 LECrim: error in legal characterisation; art. 849.2: error in assessment of documentary evidence), breach of form (arts. 850-851 LECrim) or violation of fundamental rights.
Review: To annul final judgments where new facts or evidence emerge demonstrating the innocence of the convicted person (art. 954 LECrim).
BMC guidance for companies involved in criminal proceedings
Being involved in criminal proceedings, whether as suspect, accused or victim, requires an immediate and specialist legal response. At BMC, the team led by Raúl Herrera García (ICAM) provides advice at every stage of economic criminal proceedings: money laundering, tax offences, fraud, fraudulent administration and breach of corporate duties. Early intervention in the investigation stage is, in the majority of cases, decisive for the final outcome.
