What is the “responsabilidad patrimonial” of the public authorities and when do they pay compensation?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

It is the obligation of public authorities, such as the State, the Generalitat de Catalunya (the Catalan government) or town councils, to pay compensation for damage caused by the functioning of their services. You do not need to prove that an official acted wrongly, but you do need to prove that the damage is real, that it is due to the service and that you had no duty to bear it. It does not cover everything that happens in the street or in a public hospital, because the courts do not treat the public authorities as a universal insurer. The claim is made against the public authority itself, not against its employee, within one year. The requirements Real damage, which can be valued in money and which affects one person or a specific group of people. That the damage is due to the functioning of a public service, such as the maintenance of streets and roads, healthcare or education. This is what is known as the causal link. That you have no legal duty to bear it. That it is not caused by force majeure, that is, an extraordinary event, unconnected with the service, which could not have been avoided. That you claim within one year, which for injuries runs from discharge or from when the after-effects are known. How far it goes The law refers to the normal or abnormal functioning of services, so there is no need to prove that anyone made a mistake. But the courts repeatedly point out that being responsible for a service does not make the public authorities an insurer against every risk. In the most common cases, such as falls in the street or healthcare, they require the service to have fallen below the level of safety or quality that can reasonably be expected of it. That is why trips over small or clearly visible defects are not usually compensated. In the public health service, a poor outcome is not enough either if the staff acted as good medical practice required at the time. Typical cases are a fall caused by a loose paving slab, a pothole that damages a wheel, a tree that falls on a car, negligence in a public hospital or in a private hospital treating patients on behalf of the public health service and an accident involving a pupil at a state school. If you contributed to the damage, for example by not paying attention, the compensation is reduced proportionately. How to claim A written claim is submitted to the public authority responsible, without a lawyer and at no cost. Unlike civil claims, there is no need to try to reach an agreement first. The claim is made against the public authority and not against the official, although the authority can later recover what it paid from the official if they acted deliberately or with gross negligence. The public authority has six months to decide. In Catalonia, if 50.000 euros or more is claimed from the Generalitat, a town council or a provincial council, the “Comissió Jurídica Assessora”, the Catalan government's legal advisory body, must give its opinion before the decision is made. If the claim is against the State, the opinion is given by the “Consejo de Estado”, the Spanish government's highest advisory body. If the authority rejects the claim or does not reply, you can go, with a lawyer, to the administrative court, which is the court that hears cases against the public authorities.