Legal tip 309. Law 57/68 and Public Order
Wednesday, June 30, 2010 @ 3:33 PM
For Ruth specially, as a reply to Bank of Spain:
Law 57/68 came to establish measures for the protection of public order within the field of off-plan sales. Its preamble reflected this with absolute clarity and boldness. With expressions such as:
-Serious impairment of social life
-Protection of high interests of the community
-Public interest
-Protection of the weaker party that advances confidently large quantities for housing purposes.
-Need for the establishment of general rules: mandatory, non-waivable, preventive, to ensure real and effective application of these payments to building activities, as well as to secure the refund of said amounts plus legal interests in the event that constructio is not started or finished on time.
Specific and clear obligations which were established:
a) Obligation to developers to receive advanced amounts through banks or saving banks
b) Obligations to Banks to audit these amounts are allocated for building purposes, and
c) Obligations to Banks to verify on the existence of Bank Guarantees/ Insurance Policies for the refund of money to buyers in case the building project is delayed,
This is why, rights contained in this Law for the protection of purchasers ( whatever their kind or origin) are by mandate of article 7 of said law compulsory and cannot be waived by vehicle of private contract or agreements.
Problems regarding the existence of 57/68 Bank Guarantees or Insurance policies are not a matter of private, free relationships between Bank and client. They are, they have been,since 1968, a public order affair.
Best regards,
Maria
Forged furniture. Typical of andalusian patios by Jesuli at Flickr.com