Extra-Contractual Civil Liability in Spain: Complete Guide (Art. 1902 CC)

Extra-Contractual Civil Liability in Spain: Complete Guide

Extra-contractual civil liability ( also known as tortious liability or responsabilidad aquiliana ) is a cornerstone of Spanish damages law. Its primary regulation is found in Articles 1902-1910 of the Civil Code (CC).

Article 1902 CC states the general principle:

"He who by act or omission causes damage to another, through fault or negligence, is obliged to repair the damage caused."

Elements of Extra-Contractual Liability

Four elements must be present:

1. Act or Omission

Active conduct causing harm, or failure to act when legally required.

2. Damage

The essential prerequisite. Types include:

• Patrimonial damage: actual loss (daño emergente) and lost profits (lucro cesante)
• Moral damage: suffering, anguish, infringement of personality rights
• Bodily harm: physical injuries, quantified by reference to traffic accident scales

Damage must be real, economically assessable, individualized, and unlawful.

3. Causation

A cause-and-effect relationship between the act/omission and the damage. The Supreme Court applies:

• Equivalence of conditions: every condition without which the damage would not have occurred
• Adequate causation: only conditions generally apt to produce the result
• Objective imputation: normative filter based on the protective purpose of the rule

Causation is broken by force majeure, exclusive victim fault, or third-party intervention.

4. Fault or Negligence

Under Art. 1902 CC, fault is the subjective attribution criterion, failure to exercise the diligence required by the circumstances.

Subjective vs. Objective Liability

Subjective System (Art. 1902 CC)

The classic system requires proof of fault. The burden falls on the claimant.

Evolution Toward Objective Liability

The Supreme Court has progressively objectified liability through:

• Burden of proof reversal: in hazardous activities, fault is presumed, and the defendant must prove due diligence
• Risk doctrine: whoever creates risk through their activity bears the harmful consequences, unless force majeure or exclusive victim fault is proven

Special Regimes (Arts. 1903-1910 CC)

• Vicarious liability (Art. 1903): parents for children, employers for employees, schools for students
• Animal liability (Art. 1905): practically strict liability for animal owners
• Building collapse (Art. 1907): owner liable for damage from lack of necessary repairs
• Property activities (Art. 1908): explosions, fires, excessive emissions, falling trees

Limitation Period

General: 1 Year (Art. 1968.2 CC)

The claim prescribes one year from when the injured party became aware of the damage.

When Does the Clock Start?

• Instantaneous damage: from occurrence
• Continuing damage: from cessation
• Latent damage: from manifestation
• Personal injuries: from medical discharge or stabilization of sequelae

Interruption

• Formal extrajudicial claim (burofax)
• Filing of lawsuit
• Debtor acknowledgment
• Mediation proceedings (Law 5/2012)

Quantification of Damages

• Actual loss: value of property lost or destroyed
• Lost profits: income foregone, frustrated contracts
• Moral damages: at the court's discretion
• Bodily harm: traffic accident scale (Law 35/2015) applied by analogy as a non-binding reference

The full reparation principle requires restoring the victim to their pre-damage position, no more, no less.

Contributory Fault

When the victim contributes to the damage, compensation is proportionally reduced at the court's discretion.

How Lexiel Can Help

Lexiel AI helps civil liability lawyers locate Supreme Court case law on specific damage scenarios, assess claim viability, identify applicable regimes, and quantify damages with references to recent judgments; all citations verified against CENDOJ to eliminate the risk of citing non-existent case law.