We have won a case of economic violence!

We tell you what economic violence is and how we managed to have it recognised:

Economic violence, within a context of gender-based violence, consists of controlling women’s access to financial resources, reducing their ability to support themselves and their children, if any, making them financially dependent on their partner or ex-partner and making it harder for them to leave the cycle of violence — when it occurs during the relationship — and to have a dignified life with a minimum level of certainty and dignity — when suffered afterwards.

This type of violence, as such, is not properly included or defined in our legal system, which makes it more difficult to eliminate. However, the Istanbul Convention, ratified by Spain in 2014, includes a direct reference to economic violence in Article 3 as one of the manifestations of gender-based violence. For this reason, in practice, this type of violence is subsumed within other offences that are defined in law, but certain specific characteristics of this form of domination, oppression and control based on gender are left out. We are closely following the progress of the State Pact against Gender-Based Violence, whose measures must, of course, be provided with a proper budget.

In this case, Article 227.2 of the Criminal Code applies because the unpaid amounts consist of mortgage loan instalments. The person now convicted stopped paying them despite being aware of this obligation and having sufficient financial means — his solvency was proven. He unilaterally decided to stop paying his share of the mortgage, thereby financially suffocating our client and creating the imminent risk that his ex-partner and their shared minor child would be evicted.