La palabra del día: Subrogación

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Feminine noun. Legal transaction whereby one person replaces another in an obligation. Therefore, it can occur in either of the two positions of an obligation: debtor and creditor position. E.g.: La operación concluye con la formalización de la venta y subrogación: La operación concluye con la formalización de la venta y subrogación: The transaction concludes with the formalisation of the sale and subrogation. dc

La expresión del día: Maternidad subrogada

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Feminine noun. It is an arrangement, often supported by a legal agreement, whereby a woman (the surrogate mother) agrees to bear a child for another person or persons, who will become the child’s parent(s) after birth. E.g.: La Comisión Especial observa que el número de acuerdos de maternidad subrogada en el ámbito internacional está aumentando rápidamente: The Special Commission noted that the number of international surrogacy arrangements is increasing rapidly.
In Spain it is not permitted by the legislation that regulates assisted reproduction techniques but it is legal if the birth takes place in a country where this kind arrangement is regulated. In Latin America is generally not regulated. dc

La palabra del día: Aguinaldo

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Masculine noun. From the Latin expression hoc in anno: in this year. It is an extra payment given to employees at the end of December. Although the amount of the payment depends on a number of factors, it usually matches an employee’s monthly salary and can be paid in one or more installments (depending on the country). It is important to note that the aguinaldo is not a grant from the employer but a right for the employee because it is set by law. In Argentina is usually paid a couple of days before Christmas to allow the employees to buy Christmas gifts.
Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo. dc

La palabra del día: Proveer

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Verb: Used in Business Spanish as to provide or facilitate what is necessary or convenient for a purpose. E.g.: Las concesiones atraen a inversores cuando debido a restricciones de financiamiento, el operador nacional no puede proveer el servicio: Granting concessions attracts investors when restricted funding prevents the national carrier from providing the service.
It is very common to mix this verb up with prever: ‘to foresee’, because their conjugations are very similar: proveer: proveo, proveí, proveyera; prever: preveo, preví, preveyera.
The nouns are la provisión and el proveedor/la proveedora (the contractor/suplier); and the noun for prever is la previsión: ‘forecast’. The adjctives for previsión are previsto/a: ‘forecasted’, and previsor/a: ‘foresighted, far-sighted’. Synonyms of previsor/a can be prevenido/a and precavido/a.
In another note, un/una veedor/a is an observer or a seer. I believe it is here where resides the origin of the confusion between proveer and prever. I do not know why veedor has two es. dc

La palabra del día: Desempeñar

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Verb: To exercise the obligations inherent to a profession, position or trade. E.g.: Se pretende que ninguno de los que han desempeñado las funciones de ministerio fiscal pueda desempeñar funciones de juez: You say that no magistrate who has held the office of Public Prosecutor can perform the functions of a judge.
The noun is el desempeño. dc

La palabra del día: Amparo

Masculine noun: Legal appeal processed before a high court of justice when the rights guaranteed by the constitution are not respected by other courts or authorities. If the right to be protected is personal freedom, we do not use an amparo but an habeas corpus. In a nutshell, my teacher of Derecho Constitucional used to say that an amparo is nothing else than an habeas corpus for any other right apart from personal freedom. E.g.: Domingo Antenor Alvarez Angulo, en efecto, introdujo un recurso de amparo ante el tribunal de apelaciones, Circunscripción Managua…: Domingo Antenor Alvarez Angulo did indeed file a Writ of Protection with the Appeals Court, Managua District…. dc


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