Spanish Social Jurisdiction Act: 2026 guide | BMC

Q: What is the time limit for bringing an unfair dismissal claim in Spain?

Article 59.3 of the Workers' Statute, read with article 103 LRJS, sets a forfeiture period of twenty working days to bring a dismissal claim, running from the day after the dismissal. This is a forfeiture period, not a limitation period: it does not suspend, only tolerate. Suspension operates from the lodging of the conciliation form at the SMAC (or the equivalent regional body) until the conciliation hearing takes place or fifteen working days have elapsed since lodging without a hearing being held. If the employee does not bring the claim within the forfeiture period, the right to challenge the dismissal is permanently lost.

Q: Is prior conciliation mandatory before suing in the employment courts?

Yes, as a general rule. Article 63 LRJS provides that an attempt at conciliation or mediation before the SMAC (Mediation, Arbitration and Conciliation Service) or the equivalent regional body is a prerequisite to proceedings. Failure to comply renders the claim inadmissible. Exceptions from prior conciliation include: proceedings against the State and other public law entities, social security proceedings, collective disputes, challenges to collective agreements, protection of fundamental rights proceedings, collectively challenged redundancy plans, and proceedings combining dismissal and penalty challenge, among others.

Q: How does the ordinary labour proceeding unfold?

The ordinary labour proceeding (arts. 80-101 LRJS) is designed to resolve individual employment disputes quickly. After a written claim, the court sets a date for the oral hearing, typically within two to four months. At the hearing, which is oral and concentrated, the claimant confirms the claim, the respondent replies orally, both parties adduce evidence (witness testimony, documents, party interrogation), and the judge may deliver judgment at the hearing or within five working days. The judgment may be appealed by suplicación before the Social Chamber of the Superior Court of Justice when the amount exceeds €3,000 or the subject matter allows.

Q: When may the employee choose between reinstatement and compensation following an unfair dismissal?

Article 56 ET and articles 103-105 LRJS govern the consequences of unfair dismissal. When a dismissal is declared unfair, the employer exercises the option between reinstating the employee or paying compensation (33 days' pay per year worked, up to a maximum of 24 monthly salaries). However, if the employee is a workers' legal representative or trade union delegate, the option belongs to the employee, not the employer. In dismissal proceedings, the judgment must be provisionally enforced if the employee requests provisional reinstatement while the suplicación appeal is pending, obliging the employer to reinstate provisionally or pay wages during the appeal until it is resolved.

Q: What is the suplicación appeal and when does it lie?

The suplicación appeal (arts. 191-198 LRJS) is the ordinary devolutive appeal against judgments delivered by the Employment Courts at first instance, resolved by the Social Chamber of the Superior Court of Justice. It lies when the amount of the case exceeds €3,000, when the judgment declares or impugns a dismissal, when it rules on professional classification, or when it decides social security matters exceeding that financial threshold. The suplicación is not a full second instance: only the law applied and the proven facts that have documentary or expert support in the first-instance judgment may be reviewed. The time limit for lodging the appeal is ten working days from notification of the judgment.

Q: What are collective disputes and how are they handled under the LRJS?

Collective disputes (arts. 153-162 LRJS) are those affecting a generic group of workers or a trade union in defence of its economic or social interests. A collective dispute claim may be brought by workers' representatives, trade unions with presence in the scope of the dispute, employers' associations, or the employer itself when interpreting the application of a collective agreement. The collective dispute process is preferential and urgent (art. 157 LRJS) and may begin without prior conciliation when a collective agreement is being challenged. The judgment resolving a collective dispute has res judicata effect on pending and future individual proceedings involving the same subject matter.

Q: Can the company challenge a redundancy plan before the employment courts?

Yes. The LRJS extended the employment court's jurisdiction, compared to the previous act, to hear challenges to redundancy plans (ERE, ERTE and measures of collective substantial modification). Article 124 LRJS sets out the procedure for collectively challenging an ERE. The collective claim may be brought by workers' representatives, trade unions and, in certain circumstances, the Labour Authority. Concurrently, affected workers may individually challenge the termination of their contracts in the dismissal proceedings under article 103 LRJS, although the collective judgment has res judicata effect on the individual if it was brought first.

Q: What happens if the company does not appear at the labour hearing?

Article 83.3 LRJS provides that if the duly cited respondent fails to appear without justification, the hearing proceeds in its absence and all evidence proposed by the claimant is admitted. There is no automatic 'fictitious confession' as in civil law, but unjustified absence may be treated as evidential indication of the facts alleged by the claimant. Additionally, if the employer fails to attend the prior conciliation hearing without justification, the administrative body notes this in the record and may impose a fine. Conversely, if the employee fails to appear at the hearing, the claim is treated as withdrawn (art. 83.2 LRJS).

Q: How are labour judgments enforced and how long does enforcement take?

Enforcement of labour judgments (arts. 237-280 LRJS) is one of the critical points of the process. A labour judgment ordering payment of a sum is provisionally enforceable from the moment it is delivered at first instance, even if under suplicación appeal (art. 303 LRJS), unless the appellant deposits or consigns the sum owed. The enforcement process is managed by the Employment Court that delivered the judgment. In practice, effective enforcement can be significantly delayed if the company has no attachable assets or is in insolvency proceedings, in which case labour credits acquire the status of preferential or general privileged credits depending on their nature (wages for the last 30 days, dismissal compensation).

Ley 36/2011, of 10 October, Reguladora de la Jurisdicción Social (LRJS) is the procedural statute governing all proceedings before the employment courts and tribunals in Spain. When an employee challenges a dismissal, when a company defends the legality of a redundancy plan, when a trade union promotes a collective dispute, or when recognition of a social security benefit is in dispute, it is the LRJS that sets the rules of the process. Knowledge of this legislation is essential for any company with employees in Spain, because the time limits in labour proceedings are very short and, in many cases, missing them has definitive consequences.

Scope and jurisdiction of the employment courts

The LRJS significantly expanded the scope of employment court jurisdiction compared to its predecessor, the Labour Procedure Act 1995. Article 1 LRJS declares that the employment courts have jurisdiction over claims arising within the social branch of the law, in both individual and collective disputes.

Matters within employment court jurisdiction

Article 2 LRJS lists the matters within the jurisdiction of the employment courts:

Employment contracts: creation, modification, suspension and termination.
Social security: recognition and refusal of benefits, contributions, employer violations.
Prevention of occupational risks: benefit surcharges, employer liability for workplace accidents and occupational diseases.
Collective agreements: challenge and interpretation.
Collective disputes.
Protection of fundamental rights and public freedoms in the employment context.
Claims against the Wage Guarantee Fund (FOGASA).
Challenge to administrative sanctions on employment and occupational risk prevention matters.

Since the LRJS came into force, the employment courts are also competent to hear claims for workplace accidents and occupational diseases where liability is sought jointly against the employer and the Mutual Insurance Society, without needing to bring the extra-contractual element before the civil courts.

The ordinary labour proceeding: articles 80 to 101 LRJS

The ordinary proceeding is the general channel for resolving individual employment claims that have no special procedure of their own.

The claim

The employment claim (art. 80 LRJS) must be submitted in writing to the Employment Court and must include:

Designation of the competent court.
Identifying details of the claimant and respondent.
Statement of the facts on which the claim is based.
Enumeration and description of the evidence proposed.
Specific relief sought.

Several of the employee’s claims against the same employer may be joined in a single claim if they arise from the same event or the same breach (art. 26 LRJS).

Scheduling and notification

After the claim is lodged, the court secretary issues an admission order and sets a hearing date. Scheduling periods vary significantly by court location, but in major cities can exceed three or four months for ordinary proceedings.

The hearing

The hearing (arts. 82-97 LRJS) is the centrepiece of the labour proceeding. It takes place in a single session where all procedural steps are concentrated:

The claimant confirms or extends the claim.
The respondent replies orally without a prior written submission (except in certain special proceedings).
Evidence is adduced: documentary, witness, party interrogation, expert if applicable.
The parties deliver their oral closing submissions.
The judge may deliver judgment orally or reserve the right to do so within five working days.

Judgment

The Employment Court judgment (art. 97 LRJS) must be reasoned and contain the proven facts and the decision. The judgment is provisionally enforceable from the moment it is delivered at first instance, which constitutes a fundamental difference from civil proceedings.

Dismissal proceedings: articles 103 to 113 LRJS

Dismissal proceedings are the most frequent special procedure in labour litigation practice.

Forfeiture period

Article 103 LRJS provides that the right to challenge a dismissal must be exercised within a forfeiture period of twenty working days from the day after the date of dismissal. Lodging the conciliation form with the SMAC suspends the forfeiture period from lodging until the conciliation hearing takes place or fifteen working days have elapsed without a hearing being held.

Consolidation of claims

Article 26 LRJS allows other claims by the employee against the same employer arising from the dismissal itself to be joined to the dismissal claim: claims for wages, overtime, pay differences. However, the dismissal claim may not be joined to claims for sums from prior periods not directly related to the termination.

Effects of the dismissal judgment (arts. 108-110 LRJS)

The judgment may classify the dismissal as:

Fair: the dismissal is valid and generates no additional compensation beyond what has already been paid.
Unfair: the dismissal lacks grounds or the grounds have not been sufficiently established. The employer must choose between reinstating the employee and paying wages during the appeal period, or paying the statutory compensation (33 days per year, maximum 24 monthly salaries). If the employee is a workers’ legal representative, the option belongs to the employee.
Void: when it violates fundamental rights or occurs in certain specially protected circumstances (pregnancy, maternity, leave for risk). The consequence is mandatory reinstatement with payment of wages during the appeal period.

Collective dismissal challenged individually (art. 124 LRJS)

Employees affected by an ERE may individually challenge their termination within the twenty-day forfeiture period, even if the collective challenge to the ERE has already been resolved or is pending. If the collective judgment has declared the ERE void, the individual judgment must follow that ruling with res judicata effect.

Collective disputes: articles 153-162 LRJS

The collective dispute procedure allows resolution of disputes affecting an indeterminate group of employees or an entire workforce in a unitary and erga omnes manner.

Standing

Those entitled to promote a collective dispute (art. 155 LRJS) include: trade unions with presence in the scope of the dispute; employers’ associations when interpreting a supra-company collective agreement; works councils and employee representatives within the company or workplace; and the employer’s representatives when interpreting an agreement.

Preferential scheduling

The collective dispute proceeding is declared urgent and preferential by article 157 LRJS: it takes priority over all other proceedings, meaning the hearing may take place within days or weeks of the claim. This preference reflects the LRJS’s objective of providing a rapid response to disputes affecting an entire organisation.

Effects of the judgment

The judgment delivered in a collective dispute proceeding has res judicata effect on pending and future individual proceedings involving the same subject matter. If an employee has an individual proceeding in progress when the collective judgment is delivered, it binds the employee even if they were not a party to the collective proceedings.

The suplicación appeal: article 191 LRJS

The suplicación appeal is the ordinary devolutive appeal in employment court proceedings, equivalent to the civil appeal.

Grounds on which it lies

Article 191 LRJS provides that the suplicación appeal lies against first-instance judgments when:

The amount in dispute exceeds €3,000.
The judgment has ruled on dismissal or termination of contract.
The judgment rules on professional classification, substantial modification of working conditions or geographical mobility in proceedings conducted under the special procedure.
The judgment was delivered in social security proceedings where the amount exceeds the established threshold.

The suplicación does not lie against judgments in proceedings for claims not exceeding €3,000, which are final from delivery.

Grounds of appeal

Article 193 LRJS provides that the suplicación may only be based on three grounds:

Breach of the essential forms of the hearing through infringement of rules governing the judgment.
Review of the proven facts in the light of documentary and expert evidence adduced at first instance.
Infringement of rules of the legal order or applicable case law.

Factual review on suplicación is very limited: it may only be sought where there is documentary or expert evidence in the record which, if correctly assessed, would have led to a different factual conclusion.

Deposit and consignment requirements to appeal

A company wishing to bring a suplicación appeal must, before lodging it (art. 229 LRJS): deposit €300 in the court’s account and, if the judgment orders payment of a sum, consign that sum in full. Failure to consign may result in the appeal being declared abandoned.

How we can help

Labour proceedings require a response within very short deadlines. A dismissal not challenged within twenty working days becomes final. A sanction imposed on an employee not challenged within the corresponding period becomes final even if unjust. At BMC, our employment law team manages the defence of companies at all levels of the employment courts.

Our employment law, unfair dismissal and ERE and collective dismissal services cover everything from drafting the dismissal letter and developing a hearing strategy, to lodging the suplicación appeal before the TSJ and, where appropriate, the cassation appeal for unification of doctrine before the Supreme Court.

LRJS social-jurisdiction labour-proceedings

← Back to Insights