Author: Daniel

In Legal Spanish, “Derechos Reales” is a term used in the legal system to refer to a set of rights that are granted to individuals or entities over a particular asset or property. These rights are called “real” because they are directly related to rights over things (res in Latin.
The concept of “Derechos Reales” is similar to the concept of “property rights” in common law systems, but it includes a wider range of legal rights that can be granted over a property. In Spanish and Latin American legal systems, these rights are specifically defined in codes which establishe the legal framework for rights over things.
Some examples of “Derechos Reales” in our legal systems include:
Propiedad: This is the most complete and absolute right that can be granted over a property. The owner of a property has the right to use, enjoy, and dispose of it freely, as long as this does not infringe on the rights of others.
Usufructo: This is a right that allows a person to use and enjoy a property that belongs to someone else, without owning it. The holder of the usufruct has the right to use and enjoy the property as if they were the owner, but they cannot sell or dispose of it. The owner keeps the nuda propiedad: naked ownership. My opinion is that usufructo is the closest legal institution we have to what in England is called leasehold.
Servidumbre: This is a right that allows a person or entity to use an immobile thing (real estate) in a particular way, even if they do not own it. For example, a person may be granted a servidumbre to use a private road that runs through someone else’s property.
Hipoteca: This is a right that a lender can claim over a property as security for a loan. If the borrower defaults on the loan, the lender has the right to foreclose on the property and sell it to recover the debt.
Derecho de Superficie: This is a right that allows a person or entity to use and occupy the surface of a property for a specific purpose, such as building a structure or conducting mining activities.
These are just a few examples of the different types of “Derechos Reales” that can be granted over a thing. Each of these rights is subject to specific legal requirements and limitations, and they can be transferred, inherited, or revoked under certain circumstances.
Overall, “Derechos Reales” play an important role in the Spanish and Latin American legal system, as they allow individuals and entities to exercise a degree of control over a particular asset or thing, while also protecting the rights of other parties who may have an interest in the same thing.

Adjective. Able to respond to an economic debt or take charge of an obligation. E.g.: Escrivá defiende que la Seguridad Social es “solvente” y reconoce la falta de personal: Escrivá stresses that the public pension system is “solid and solvent”.
The noun is la solvencia. E.g.: Motivos que dificultan la concesión de una hipoteca ajenos a la solvencia: Reasons that make it difficult to grant a mortgage other than solvency. The verb is solventar. E.g.: Para poder solventar los gastos de la vivienda subalquilaba dos habitaciones: To be able to afford the apartment she sublet two rooms.
In another note, solvente, as a noun, means solvent; the liquid in which a solute is dissolved to form a solution. I used to deal with it a lot when I was a child and ‘helped’ my father with is job as a carpenter to remove paint from wood. dc

Feminine noun. This term has two interrelated meanings: 1. Force or violence done to someone to force him/her to say or do something; 2. legitimate power of the Law to enforce compliance or prevail over its infringement. E.g.1: La acusación debe demostrar sus argumentos sin recurrir a pruebas obtenidas por coacción o por fuerza: The prosecution must prove its case without resort to evidence obtained through coercion or oppression. E.g.2: De hecho, el Estado central tiene menos poder de coacción en las regiones porque éstas se autofinancian y no siempre tienen…: Indeed, the central State has less coercive power in the regions because they are self-financed and do not always have the…
The adjective is coactivo/a, and the adverb coactivamente.
When I moved to Rome from Argentina in 2001, one of the first words from romanesco I learned was coatto. Thanks to my knowledge of Legal Spanish, I immediately guessed its meaning: a bully. Study legal Spanish with me and you will not just learn, you will also open your mind. dc

Feminine noun. Beginning of the effectiveness of a legal norm.
The verb is entrar en vigor. E.g.: Como regla general, si en ella no se dispone otra cosa, entra en vigor a los veinte días de su publicación en el Boletín Oficial del Estado (CC, art. 2.1): As a general rule, if it does not provide otherwise, it enters into force twenty days after its publication in the Official State Gazette (CC, art. 2.1). dc

Femenine noun. You may have heard this term several times and you may have translated it as ‘university college’. E.g.: Faculatad de Derecho: College of Law.
In Legal Spanish, facultad has two more meanings: 1. power or right to do something. E.g.: El derecho subjetivo es la facultad propia de un sujeto para realizar o no una cierta conducta: The subjective right is the power of a person to carry out or not a certain conduct. 2. Physical or moral aptitude to do something. In the first case, facultad can be a synonym of potestad; in the second case, a synonym of capacidad.
The verb is facultar: to empower, and the adjective facultativo/a: optional.
On another note: un/a facultativo/a, noun, is a doctor: Sanidad no encuentra un sustituto que supla al facultativo durante sus vacaciones por el plan de contingencia por la pandemia: The Health Department cannot find a substitute to replace the doctor during his holidays due to the contingency plan for the pandemic I cannot imagine the link. dc

Adjective, mainly used as a noun. Expert or knowledgeable in something. As a noun, in Legal Spanish we use this term to make reference to the expert who gives evidence in a hearing (audiencia pericial) or by a document (informe pericial). E.g.: Homicidio de Tino John: Un perito afirma que no hubo enfrentamiento: Homicide of Tino John: An expert witness affirms that there was no confrontation.
The adjective is pericial and the verb is peritar: to judge expertly.
My country has a famous glacier in the South called Perito Moreno. When I was a child, I assumed that Perito was the Christian name of a chap called Moreno, or a version of Pedrito (Pete), after all everybody called my father Pierino (Pete in Italian); but no, Mr. Moreno was an Argentine explorer who in 1902 was appointed perito, in which capacity he disproved Chilean claims to the continental divide in the Southern Cone and he was awarded with a glacier named after him. His name was Francisco Pancracio Moreno. I guess you understand why we prefer to call him just Perito. dc

Argentina. La Ley 26.743 de 2012 establece que no hay requisito de cirugías de reasignación total o parcial, ni tampoco terapias hormonales o cualquier otro tratamiento médico. Así la persona puede pedir el cambio de asignación de género en su documentación sin requisitos de ningún tipo.
Bolivia. La Ley 807 de 2016 no establece requisitos médicos para el cambio de nombre o de marcador de género. Es decir, no es necesaria una cirugía. La normativa solo exige un examen técnico psicológico que avale que la persona conoce y asume las implicancias de su decisión.
Brasil. Actualmente el proyecto que busca modificar el cambiador de género no ha sido aprobado, y solo en algunos casos se puede cambiar el nombre bajo una orden judicial del Ministerio Público.
Colombia. En junio de 2015 fue firmado un decreto presidencial que permite a los mayores de edad cambiar su marcador de género en los papeles de identificación, con tan solo un trámite administrativo y sin requisitos médicos particulares. Este procedimiento se puede realizar sólo dos veces en la vida, con diez años de diferencia y a partir de los 18 años.
Ecuador. En agosto de 2016 fue publicada la Ley Orgánica de Gestión de Identidad y Datos Civiles, que reformaba la anterior del Registro Civil y Cedulación. Con ella, cualquier persona mayor de 18 años puede solicitar al registro civil cambiar de nombre o de marcador de género, sin requisitos adicionales.
México. Al ser un país federal, cada estado tiene su propia legislación sobre el tema. Al momento 13 estados reconocen el derecho a la autoidentificación de género y con diferentes grados de restricciones.
Paraguay. El código civil de este país sólo permite el cambio de nombre en casos excepcionales y no es claro si puede ser llevado a cabo por personas trans.
Perú. En noviembre de 2016, el Tribunal Constitucional reconoció a los transexuales el derecho a cambiar su sexo y nombre en el documento nacional de identidad. El organismo acordó que se puede realizar a través de un procedimiento sumario sin establecer requisitos y explicitó que “no debe siempre ser determinado en función de la genitalidad”. La sentencia, además, le quitó el carácter de patología a la transexualidad.
Uruguay. En noviembre de 2009 fue proclamada la Ley 18.620, que legitima el derecho a la identidad de género. Bajo su normativa se puede acceder al cambio de nombre y de marcador en el Tribunal de Familia, acreditando pruebas que expliquen por qué no se reconoce con el sexo estipulado en su carnet.
Venezuela. Mientras que la Ley Orgánica del Registro Civil estipuló que cualquier ciudadano mayor de edad puede cambiar su nombre, en junio de 2017, el Tribunal Supremo reconoció el derecho de las personas a modificar su género después de diversos exámenes.

Editado de: Emol.com