Summons are compulsory orders to attend the courtroom issued by judicial authorities.
As a general rule:
Summons can be conducted by any means such a service of certified letter, fax, telephone, etc. Nevertheless in order to establish autenticity of recipient summons must be served by the court clerk or judicial conselor as well as the court assistants.
Special requirements:
• Minors and people under special protection.
Minors as witnesses or victims in the course of the investigative phase a minor should be informed in a clear and understandable way of the obligation to be truthful and of the consequences of not doing so: he can be accompanied by his/her legal representative and in addition by a person of his choice. In case of minors the assistance of an expert (psicologist) will be provided and, in case, its an investigation conducted by a judge the presence of a prosecutor is also mandatory. If the course of the trial, minors will be heard avoiding visual confrontation with the accused and preferably not being present in the court room ( videolink). Hearing minors as suspects or accused juvenil jurisdiction applies. In the course of the investigation phase the minor has to render testimony with the assistance and presence of his legal counsellor and his/her legal representative or the facto keeper or, lacking the latter, an additional prosecutor other than the one conducting the investigation. In the trial phase, court hearings might not be public media are not allowed to obtain neither broadcast images of the minor or data that might lead to his/her identification. Legislation on victims and witnesses protection applies. The Directive 2012/29UE establishing minimum standars on the rights support and protection of victims of crime has been transposed into national law.
• Witnesses and victims.
The witness is usually given the summons in writing at his domicile, where the proceedings giving rise to the summons are indicated on the document he receives, together with the place and time where he is due to appear and time, as well as other useful information. If he cannot be found at his domicile, the summons is given to the member of his family or domestic employee found there. The person receiving the summons signs to acknowledge the receipt. Other methods may be occasionally used, especially in urgent cases. However, it is essential for the court dossier to contain a written record of the addressee having received the required information on where he has to appear and the purpose of his appearance. The party serving the summons must also be clearly indicated. The letter of request may also ask for the summons to be delivered personally to the witness, indicating that it is not sufficient for it to be delivered to other individuals. It can also be accompanied (in Spanish and in the original language of the letter of request) by a summons form to record the fact that the summons has been served. Certain requirements or formalities necessary for the validity of the summons in the state of issue can also be requested. When a letter of request is issued by a state forming part of the 2000 Agreement for Judicial Assistance between the States of the EU and the purpose is to summon a witness, the letter of request should specify the reasons that prevent the summons from being sent directly by registered mail or methods other than the letter of request. The states party to the 2000 Convention should resort to sending a letter of request only when the summons cannot be sent directly. Those that are not a party to the said Convention can choose to send the summons directly or resort to a letter of request. In the case of a summons corresponding to the Spanish courts, if the witness fails to appear, he/she may be subject to criminal liability; however, the said liability does not arise automatically. When the witness fails to appear, he/she must be summoned again, this time with a fine, and warned of the fact that should he continue not to appear, he may be subject to criminal liability.
People under fourteen years of age and disabled persons or needing special protection, when intervening as witnesses in homicide or other serious judicial proceedings, shall declare with the help of psychological experts. Their statements will be audio and video recorded. This declaration shall be carried out as pre-constituted evidence (article 449ter Spanish Criminal Procedure Act).
• Accused persons and suspects.
If the person summoned does not appear and does not provide a lawful reason for failing to appear, the summons to appear may be transformed into an arrest warrant. It should be noted that arrest for failing to appear is not automatic: depending on the offence of which the suspect has been accused, the judge assesses in each case the evidence against him, the risk of escape and other relevant facts.