By Alejandro Ferreres-Comella and Cristina Ayo-Ferrándiz
The legal framework applicable to consumer protection in Spain has undergone some significant changes in the past two decades with regard to (i) the substantive law on product liability, (ii) legal aid, and (iii) class actions. As a result of those changes, consumers associations in Spain are now in a better position to claim corporate liability. Before analyzing the most relevant of those changes, it is important to briefly discuss the social and political circumstances which have led to the current legal framework.
A. Social-political circumstances that explain the changes in the consumer protection legal framework in Spain.
There are three main circumstances that explain the changes in the consumer protection legal framework in Spain, which in turn have significantly affected the legal position of industry in product liability cases:
