Alex Trelinski
SQUATTERS in Spain are finding ways of getting round a tougher new law to evict them despite the promise of speedy trials.
A change to the Criminal Procedure Act technically allows the crimes of ‘usurpation of a home’ and ‘breaking and entering’ to be heard in short hearings within a maximum period of 15 days.
It means squatter evictions have been added to a new fast-track court process, alongside a string of other crimes including physical violence, robbery and traffic offences.
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The reality though is that the process appears to take longer and some squatters are taking advantage of every legal loophole possible to delay evictions or stop them altogether.
For a 15-day speedy eviction to happen, there has to be no doubt that a squatter is in a property illegally.
The process though can be halted if a squatter presents a document, even if it is fake, to authorities.
That could be a bogus tenancy agreement, fake receipts, or even statements from third parties that alleged some kind of lease.
Any documents presented to a court will therefore delay an eviction as their veracity has to be checked.
Social media groups and online forums are offering tips to squatters including drafts of bogus contracts.
The most effective ruse is to provide a court with a lease agreement allegedly signed with the previous owner of the property, or a payment receipt.
Generating an element of doubt then buys more time for the illegal occupiers.
Another issue- as is the case in all legal matters- is that the court system is totally overloaded, especially in Spain’s big cities.
That then helps in squatter delaying tactics and some judges also making different interpretations of the new law.
Finally, as has been pointed out by homeowners groups, is the matter that the so-called inquiokupas are not part of the amended law.
The inquiokupas are people who were legal tenants initially but then stopped paying the rent and refuse to leave.
They are not classified legally as squatters, and therefore the speedy eviction process is not valid, creating frustration for landlords.
It means that legal action to evict them could take at least a year or longer.
