Mediation · Andorra
Find the right mediation lawyer in Andorra
A dispute in the Principality is easier to manage when the person advising you knows Andorran law, the Catalan file and the court that may later hear the case. Tell us your situation and we match you, free of charge, with an advocate admitted to the Andorran bar who works on negotiation and mediation.
- Advocates admitted to the Col·legi Oficial d’Advocats d’Andorra
- Support in Catalan, Spanish, French and English
- Free matching, no obligation to instruct
No cost to be matched. You agree fees directly with the lawyer, who represents and defends you in the same proceedings.
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Tell us about your situation and receive a free, confidential case review.
Mediation in Andorra
Negotiate with someone who knows the Andorran file
Disputes in Andorra rarely stay simple. A family business split, a lease in Andorra la Vella, a cross-border contract with a Spanish or French counterparty — each can end up before the Batllia d’Andorra, the Tribunal de Corts or the Tribunal Superior de Justícia. Mediation offers a different route: a structured, confidential process in which a neutral third party helps the parties build their own settlement instead of waiting for a judgment. Because Andorran civil law combines statutes, the usages and customs of the Principality and the case law of the Tribunal Superior de Justícia, a mediation lawyer in Andorra has to work across all three. Proceedings, filings and judgments are in Catalan, so documents drafted abroad need careful handling. Tell us what happened and we will match you with a lawyer who handles mediation in Andorra.
Andorra in practice
Mediation inside the Andorran legal framework
Andorra is a parliamentary co-principality whose 1993 Constitution created a fully separated judicial power, exercised by independent and irremovable batlles and magistrates. Mediation sits alongside that structure rather than replacing it, which is why the practical details below matter before you sit down at the table.
Where mediation meets the court structure
The Llei qualificada de la Justícia of 3 September 1993 allocates judicial power to the Batlles, the Tribunal de Batlles, the Tribunal de Corts and the Tribunal Superior de Justícia, and structures it into civil, criminal and administrative jurisdictions. The Batllia d’Andorra hears first instance and investigation, the Tribunal de Corts deals with serious criminal offences and the Tribunal Superior de Justícia is the highest instance and hears appeals. Your lawyer needs to know where a negotiated outcome would eventually be reflected.
Who is allowed to act for you
The practice of law in Andorra is reserved to advocates admitted to the Col·legi Oficial d’Advocats d’Andorra under Law 48/2014 of 18 December, amended by Law 10/2023. Admission as a practising member requires the required law degree, the Andorran aptitude certificate after passing the examinations and a practical traineeship. There is no separate procurador profession: the same lletrat represents and defends you, so the person negotiating is normally the person who would plead your case.
Catalan as the language of the file
Catalan is the sole official language of the State and of judicial activity in Andorra: proceedings, filings and judgments are in Catalan. For foreign clients, and for contracts drafted in Spanish, French or English, terminology and translations have to be prepared early. Working with an advocate who operates in Catalan as well as your own language keeps mediation documents consistent with what a court would later read.
Fees, judicial taxes and free legal aid
Judicial fees (taxes judicials) exist in Andorra under the Llei de taxes judicials of 22 June 2000, are treated as procedural costs and are collected by stamped paper distributed through the Col·legi d’Advocats. Advocates’ fees are freely agreed between client and lawyer. Free legal aid (benefici de justícia gratuïta) may be granted by the judge, by reasoned order, to applicants who prove insufficient economic resources, taking account of income, basic expenses, dependent family members and overall patrimonial situation.
Time limits do not pause for talks
A civil appeal against a final judgment must be filed within 20 business days of notification, 13 business days in special procedures, with 5 business days for urgent internment decisions; opposition to an admitted appeal follows the same pattern, and a motion for reconsideration allows 13 business days. Procedural periods count business days only: Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays, August and the Christmas period are excluded. Negotiation should therefore be planned around these dates, not instead of them.
Statute, custom and case law together
Andorran civil law is not codified in a single code. It combines statutes on leases, obligations, family and succession and property with the usages and customs of the Principality and the case law of the Tribunal Superior de Justícia. Any settlement therefore has to be checked against legislation and jurisprudence side by side — a strong reason to take Andorran-qualified advice before signing anything. In some proceedings the Codi de procediment civil does not make an advocate mandatory, but party representation by an advocate remains the general rule in contentious cases.
Key time limits — Litigation & Dispute Resolution
| Matter | Time limit or rule | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Civil appeal (apel·lació) against a final judgment | 20 business days from notification (13 business days in special procedures; 5 business days for urgent internment decisions) | Filed before the Tribunal Superior de Justícia, the highest instance in Andorra. |
| Opposition to an admitted civil appeal | 20 business days (13 business days in special procedures) | The responding party’s own period once the appeal has been admitted. |
| Motion for reconsideration (recurs de reposició) | 13 business days from notification of the resolution | Directed at resolutions rather than at final judgments. |
| Notification of judicial resolutions | Within a maximum of 5 business days from the date the resolution is issued | Notification is what normally starts the other periods running. |
| Choice of ordinary civil procedure | Claims of EUR 20,000 or more, of indefinite value, or which cannot be heard in a verbal procedure | Determines whether your case follows the ordinary or the verbal route. |
| Decision on an application for free legal aid | Maximum of 1 month from the filing of the complete application | The benefit is granted by the judge by reasoned order. |
| Computation of procedural periods | Business days only | Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays, August and the Christmas period are not counted. |
| Civil enforcement — caducity of the executive action | 30 years | The long-stop period for enforcing an executive title. |
Country data on this page is taken from official Andorran sources — the Consell General, the Consell Superior de la Justícia, the Col·legi Oficial d’Advocats d’Andorra and the Andorran legal portal — consulted in 2025.
- Consell Superior de la Justícia — Andorran judicial system
- Col·legi Oficial d’Advocats d’Andorra (CADA)
- Llei 48/2014 on the practice of the legal profession
- Llei qualificada de la Justícia, 3 September 1993
- Codi de procediment civil — periods and procedure
- Ordinary civil procedure threshold
- Free legal aid — beneficis de justícia gratuïta
- Llei de taxes judicials, 22 June 2000
- Llei 31/2018 on labour relations
- Llei 15/2022 — consolidated text on urban leases
- Constitution of the Principality of Andorra
Why clients contact us
The moment a dispute in Andorra stops being informal
Most people look for a mediation lawyer in Andorra after something has already changed: a notification arrives, a partner stops talking, or a cross-border deal starts to unravel.
A Catalan document you cannot place
A notification, a claim or a draft agreement arrives in Catalan and you are unsure what it commits you to, which period applies or whether the file is already before the Batllia d’Andorra. Without Andorran-qualified advice, negotiation starts from a position of uncertainty.
Cross-border with no clear home
Your contract, family or business interest crosses Andorra, Spain and France at once. Rules, language and procedure change at each border, and the person you need is someone who regularly works with the Andorran courts and the local bar.
Talks that go round in circles
You have tried to settle directly, positions have hardened and messages are repeating themselves. A structured mediation process with a neutral third party, prepared by your own advocate, is often the only way to move a stalled file forward.
How we help
Matching you with the right mediation counsel in Andorra
We are not a law firm. We listen to your situation and introduce you to an advocate who fits the matter, the language and the forum.
Admitted, not approximate
Every lawyer we introduce practises through the Col·legi Oficial d’Advocats d’Andorra, so you are advised by someone entitled to represent and defend you before the Andorran courts as well as to negotiate.
One professional, both roles
Andorra has no separate procurador profession. The advocate who sits with you in mediation is the same lawyer who would represent you in proceedings, which keeps strategy consistent from the first conversation.
Language handled from the start
Because Catalan is the sole official language of judicial activity, we look for counsel who can work in Catalan and in your own language, so contracts, minutes and filings do not drift apart.
Free, and without pressure
Being matched costs you nothing and creates no obligation. You discuss scope and fees directly with the lawyer — advocates’ fees in Andorra are freely agreed between client and lawyer.
Also active in
Cross-border matters beyond Andorra
Many Andorran files have a second centre of gravity abroad. We also match clients with lawyers in neighbouring and other European jurisdictions when your dispute crosses a border.
Common questions
Mediation in Andorra: what clients ask
Do I really need a mediation lawyer in Andorra if we are only negotiating?
Yes, in practice. Andorran civil law is not codified in a single code: it combines statutes with the usages and customs of the Principality and the case law of the Tribunal Superior de Justícia. Someone qualified in Andorra can test a proposed settlement against all three before you commit to it in writing.
Who is entitled to represent me in Andorra?
The practice of law is reserved to advocates admitted to the Col·legi Oficial d’Advocats d’Andorra, regulated by Law 48/2014 as amended by Law 10/2023. Admission as a practising member requires the relevant law degree, the Andorran aptitude certificate after examinations and a practical traineeship. Andorra has no separate procurador profession, so the same lawyer represents and defends you.
Will the mediation or the court file be in Catalan?
Catalan is the sole official language of the State and of judicial activity in Andorra, so proceedings, filings and judgments are in Catalan. If your documents come from Spain, France or elsewhere, translations and terminology should be prepared early. This is a practical point worth raising with your lawyer at the first meeting.
What does a mediation lawyer in Andorra cost?
Advocates’ fees are freely agreed between client and lawyer, so scope and pricing are settled directly with the professional you instruct. Depending on the forum, judicial fees (taxes judicials) may also apply as procedural costs. Free legal aid may be granted by the judge, by reasoned order, to applicants who prove insufficient economic resources.
Does negotiating stop the procedural clock?
No. Time limits keep running while parties talk. A civil appeal against a final judgment needs 20 business days from notification, 13 business days in special procedures, and a motion for reconsideration 13 business days. Procedural periods count business days only: Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays, August and the Christmas period are excluded.
Which kinds of Andorran disputes can go to mediation?
Suitability depends on the matter. Civil and commercial disagreements, lease questions and family or succession issues are the usual candidates, and a lawyer will assess whether yours is appropriate. Note that some thresholds and periods are fixed by law — for example the 3-year minimum for a residential lease or the 40 business days for challenging a dismissal.
Next step
Tell us about your Andorran dispute
Describe what has happened in a few lines: the parties, the subject matter, any notification you have received and the languages you work in. We will match you with a mediation lawyer in Andorra who handles your type of case, and you decide afterwards whether to instruct them.