Property expert witness in Alicante

A perito judicial is an expert witness with specialised technical knowledge who helps a judge understand matters such as the origin of a crack or the repair cost of faulty renovation work. They provide a written dictamen pericial, or expert report, and explain it at trial if called. The Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil, Spain's civil procedure law, requires objectivity and a sworn or solemn declaration of truthfulness, whether a party instructs the expert or the court appoints them.

A party-appointed expert is selected and paid by one party, whose report is normally submitted with the claim or defence. A court-appointed expert is appointed at the parties' request, usually through a draw from lists supplied by professional bodies and associations. Both must be objective, and the judge assesses their reports using sana crítica, reasoned evaluation of evidence. In practice, most housing defect claims begin with a party-appointed expert.

As a general rule, it accompanies the claim or defence. If it cannot be ready in time, the Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil, Spain's civil procedure law, allows it to be announced in that document and submitted later within the statutory deadlines, normally before the preliminary hearing or trial hearing. These periods are short, so commission the report when deciding to claim, allowing your solicitor to receive it before preparing the case.

The person instructing a party-appointed expert pays their fees. If you win and the judgment orders the other party to pay costs, expert fees may form part of the costs payable to you, subject to statutory limits. A court-appointed expert usually requests a provisión de fondos, an advance towards fees, from the party who requested the appointment. The final allocation follows the judgment's decision on costs.

This depends on complexity, the number of defects and the documents requiring study. A report on a home with a few issues may be ready within a few days after inspection. Numerous defects or an abandoned renovation take longer because each item must be measured and valued. The quote sets the delivery period. If you have a procedural deadline, include it when requesting a quote.