As a result of the annexe to the Spanish budgetary law 24/2001, which was published in the official Spanish gazette of December 31^st 2001 (1) and came into force on 1^st January 2002, various regulations with considerable implication for Spanish land registry have been added or modified. Those most affected by the new rulings are the "registradores" (land registry judges) and Spanish notaries. Worthy of particular mention are the variety of possibilities, which in comparison to the property register (2), permit many legally relevant acts (request for extracts, priority provision of security) to be carried out using the "e-mail" system. Furthermore, the drawing up of notarial deeds of transfer will be considerably easier as will the deletion of "old encumbrances" from the property register.

I. Notaries shorter documents

This new regulation is to be welcomed. Both Spanish notaries and Spanish land registry judges are fully qualified jurists whose declaration of authority to attest documents ("fe pblica") may be given. If through this action it will mean that documents often far too long in the past will become shorter, as will the time taken by Spanish land registry judges to carry out their inspections, then the legislator has with this point alone in the partial reform obtained the desired success.

II. Land registry judges tighter deadlines

While granting Spanish notaries increased flexibility, the legislator has imposed new deadlines for land registry judges. From 1^st January 2002, all notarial documents presented to him must be evaluated and the decision whether to inscribe them taken within a period of 15 days. If the judge does not comply with this deadline, the petitioner has the right to set a further 3-day limit. If he still fails to decide within this time, then a reduction of 30% in his registration fees automatically ensues. This undertaking by the legislator is implemented through the amended version of Art. 18 of the Spanish mortgage law. If one considers that Spanish land registry judges, as well as Spanish notaries work freelance and receive fees ("aranceles") for their official assessments, then by all accounts the Spanish legislator has created something which in practice is likely to be a very effective tool: it is unlikely to go down well with a land registry judge if he has to do without part of his fee because the office working within his commercial organisation is unable to comply with the deadlines now laid down by law. Regardless of this, of course, the penalties system provided for in the mortgages law, which has itself been tightened during current revision (3), also applies.