Although it may seem as strange as it is surprising to some, in the last few years the Catalonian Regional Government has been imposing monetary fines on companies who advertise solely in Spanish. The reality is that, since 1998, a public linguistic law has been in force in Catalonia which, depending on how it is interpreted and applied, can lead to said penalties. And the truth is that, due to politics, this law has not been applied until as of late.

The problem is that in the last few months, there have been various contradictory rulings in this respect, leading to growing insecurity, but mmmm ABOGADOS has just obtained a ruling which might clarify the matter.

Said ruling concludes that the law did not apply to the aforementioned advertising since, among other reasons, it did not qualify as a “document offering services”. The adjudicator deemed that, as advertising in Spanish can be seen in Catalonia on a daily basis, it is evident that it is not a violation; the law should be interpreted and applied to promote the Catalan language. >p>

For further information, please contact Alex Ensesa Casulleras: aensesa@mmmm.es