Legal incapacitation
Supporting a family member does not mean deciding for them. We help you find the right support, respecting their wishes and preferences.
What it involves
Support measures for people with disabilities (provisión de apoyos) help a person make their own decisions and exercise their rights: managing their money, signing documents or looking after their health. What used to be known as legal incapacitation (incapacitación) has given way to a model that respects their wishes and preferences. Support can be voluntary, arranged by the person themselves before a notary, or court-ordered, such as curatorship (curatela).
Is this your case?
- Your mother is starting to have difficulty managing her accounts or her paperwork.
- A family member with an intellectual disability is coming of age and you want to arrange their support.
- You want to set out before a notary who will support you if you ever need it.
- A support measure is already in place and needs to be reviewed or changed, or accounts must be reported to the court.
How we help
We listen to the person and those around them calmly and respectfully. We explain which support is the best fit, starting with the least intrusive options, such as a lasting power of attorney (poderes preventivos) or informal de facto care (guarda de hecho). If a court measure is needed, we prepare the application, gather the reports and support the family throughout the procedure. We can help you in Spanish, Arabic, Tamazight, French and English, at our offices in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Málaga and Barcelona or online, wherever you are in Spain.
To have everything planned, we can also help you with your will and with handling an inheritance.
Frequently asked questions
- How do support measures differ from the former legal incapacitation?
- In the past, a person was declared incapable and someone else decided for them. Today the idea is the opposite: the person keeps making their own decisions and receives the help they need, only in the areas where they need it and respecting their wishes.
- Do I have to go to court to help my family member with their paperwork?
- Not always. In many cases, a power of attorney granted before a notary in good time, or the support the family already provides (guarda de hecho, informal de facto care), is enough. The court route is kept for when those options are not sufficient.
- My father lives in Spain but has assets in his country. Do the support measures apply there?
- It depends on the country and the type of measure. Sometimes the decision has to be recognised or adapted in the other country. We review this with you so that the support works wherever your family member needs it.
Last updated:
Tell us about your case.
A first conversation — confidential and without obligation — to understand whether we can help, and how.
We speak Spanish, Arabic, Tamazight (Berber), French and English.