Suspension of the eviction of mortgagors. Examination of the reforms introduced by Law 25/2015 on the second-chance mechanism, and the recent caselaw of the Courts

Abstract

The exceptional principle of the suspension of evictions, introduced into Spanish Law by Royal Decree-law 27/2012 of 15 November, has seen its scope of application successively extended by Law 1/2013 of 14 May, which tacitly repealed it and replaced its regulation with new partially-amended provisions, and by Law 25/2015 of 28 July, deriving from Royal Decree-law 1/2015 of 27 February. The amendments introduced into this principle, with the aim of extending its scope of application, have affected both its temporal scope of application and its subjective scope of application. With regard to the former, the author interprets that the dies a quo of the measure for the suspension of evictions should be calculated as from the date the deed is issued after the auction, and that it should extend for a term of four years, such that the eviction of families foreclosed on and who benefit from the suspension measure may only commence as from 16 May 2017, provided that they have been able to occupy the dwelling free of charge for four years. With regard to the subjective scope of application, the measure to increase the maximum income that the family unit may receive is examined. Said income was defined by Law 1/2013 as four or five times the Public Indicator of Multiple-Effect Income (IPREM), in certain exceptional cases (for the benefit of disabled people), and Law 25/2015 provides that it must always be calculated on the basis of the Spanish Public Multiple Effect Income Indicator (IPREM) payable in fourteen instalments. Likewise, it is argued that in relation to the new class of persons benefitting from the measure under Law 25/2015 (persons aged over 60), the suspension of eviction applies to them although they are not part of a family unit.