30 years of Free Justice: the hour of a necessary solution

The year 2026 marks a milestone of profound significance for the legal profession and for citizens: 30 years have passed since the Free Legal Aid Law. Three decades have already passed since, in January 1996, a regulation was published in the BOE by which Spain began to build a system that has allowed millions of citizens to exercise their rights under equal conditions, even if they did not have economic means.

Not only have they had the right to a legal professional when they were accused of a crime, but also when they have been victims, or when they have wanted to defend their rights against an unfair dismissal. Furthermore, hundreds of thousands of lawyers have sustained this service with an exemplary vocation: going to police stations and assisting in courts at any hour, to guarantee that the right to defense was not a rhetorical declaration, but a tangible reality.

The first conclusion we must draw from this anniversary is clear: Legal Aid has been a decisive instrument in the consolidation of the rule of law in our country. However, commemorating does not mean complacency; 30 years later, the law shows evident signs of exhaustion.

In these decades many things have changed and the law has evolved. The legislator has introduced new benefits and the courts have broadened their scope, through some rulings. Legal Aid in our country has become a complex mechanism that requires very well-trained lawyers, specialized in some matters, as well as agile managers. But these improvements have arrived, on too many occasions, without recognition of the value of the work of the legal professionals who make them possible.

"For years they demand something as basic as the dignified remuneration of their work"

Here lies one of the main demands of the Spanish Legal Profession: an essential public service cannot exist sustained on precariousness. For years, public defenders, Bar Associations, and the Spanish Legal Profession have been demanding something as basic as fair remuneration for their work. Unremunerated actions, late payments, and outdated fee schedules that do not reflect the real complexity of many procedures persist.

This situation not only affects professionals, but also jeopardizes the quality of the service and, ultimately, the right to defense of citizens. To those of us who know the system in depth, it is not surprising to see how, with deep sadness and for quite a few years now, the legal professionals registered for the Public Defender's Office do nothing but decrease.

We know that steps have been initiated to update scales and improve compensation in complex procedures, but these advances are clearly insufficient, because they do not solve the structural problem. As stated in the report by the European Commission “Justice Scoreboard”, Spain is the third country with the lowest payments for public defenders in criminal cases, behind Cyprus and Lithuania.

Therefore, from the Spanish Legal Profession we demand a new Free Legal Aid Law. A partial reform or a regulatory adjustment is not enough, but rather a comprehensive regulation that responds to the needs of the 21st century. Legal professionals need it, because citizens and their rights depend on it. For all this, Spanish Legal Profession demands that the dignity and professionalism of the lawyers who are part of this public service be recognized.

Spain needs a Law that guarantees, in the first place, the professional dignity of those who provide this great service. This implies adequate, homogeneous, and updated remunerations throughout the territory, as well as the recognition of all actions performed, without exceptions. Furthermore, the law must incorporate the new instruments of the judicial system, such as mediation, conciliation, and other mechanisms. Justice and the rights of our citizens cannot be improvised.

"The people responsible for developing it will always carry the weight of knowing that their work affects thousands of lawyers and millions of citizens in Spain"

All of this will be possible if the law is built with real dialogue from the beginning. There is no other possible formula. Experience has already taught us something fundamental: it is not possible to design an effective system of free legal aid without counting on the legal profession. Excluding us from the legislative process would not only be a mistake, but the best way to condemn the norm to failure.

We know that this law is important and that it is not an easy process. It is not easy because those responsible for developing it will always carry the weight of knowing that their work affects thousands of lawyers and millions of citizens in Spain. Because this law does not belong to a government nor to an institution; it belongs to the citizenry, and its design must respond to the guarantee of their rights.

We find ourselves, therefore, at a decisive moment that demands brave and structural reforms. From the Spanish Legal Profession, that is our intention. Today, 30 years later, Spain faces its most important exam: it is no longer enough to recognize the value of the Legal Aid and its professionals; it is time to ensure its future. Spain needs a law that does not allow the precariousness of those who sustain it and that guarantees, without exceptions, real access to justice. We are not talking about a technical improvement, but about a country decision.

If something our own experience has shown us, and international current affairs, it is that the quality of a democracy is measured, ultimately, by how it protects those who need it most. That protection, in our Rule of Law, is guaranteed daily by the legal professionals of the Public Defender's Office. In this examination, we cannot afford to make mistakes.