Spanish Bar Certifies Digital Competence, Offering Free AI Legal Platform Access

The Consejo General de la Abogacía Española (CGAE) has formalized an initiative to integrate advanced digital literacy within Spain's legal profession by certifying lawyers who complete the Upro Program in Digital Competencies. This certification provides graduates with immediate, tangible benefits: complimentary trial access to premier Artificial Intelligence (AI) legal software suites for several months. This strategic action, underscored by agreements signed by CGAE President Salvador González, positions the Spanish legal sector as a leader in technological integration across Europe.

Upon successfully concluding the Upro Program, participants earn the designation of 'digital lawyer,' receiving a formal certificate validating their proficiency in modern legal technology. The reward includes multi-month free trials for sophisticated AI tools engineered for legal application. Specifically, graduates gain one month of access to GenIA-L from Lefebvre, one month for Helena provided by Sepín, and two months for Tirant Prime, published by Tirant Lo Blanch. These platforms are designed to enhance advanced legal research, streamline document drafting, and facilitate complex analysis using curated legal data.

The foundational Upro Program is a large-scale, federally supported endeavor, financed through European funds and administered collaboratively by Unión Profesional and Red.es. The training utilizes a flexible, 150-hour hybrid curriculum, combining online modules with in-person sessions at affiliated local bar associations. This extensive training aims to equip tens of thousands of legal professionals with essential technological skills, with the program scheduled to continue training participants until June 2026. As of December 2025, the initiative had already enrolled over 16,000 lawyers, indicating significant demand for digital upskilling.

President Salvador González stressed the critical nature of this transition, drawing a historical parallel to the mandatory adoption of electronic communications over a decade ago. González asserted that the daily knowledge and utilization of AI will quickly transition from being an optional advantage to an indispensable component of daily legal practice. The agreements formalizing these benefits were established through meetings between the CGAE President and key executives from the technology providers, including Juan Pujol of Lefebvre, Laura Barrios of Tirant Lo Blanch, and Jéssica Peña of Sepín.

This nationwide digital push operates under a larger framework managed by Red.es, an entity within the Ministry for Digital Transformation and Public Function. Red.es allocated 200 million euros to Unión Profesional for the development of this Digital Competencies Program for professional colleges. This funding, channeled via the Next Generation EU funds through the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan, targets the modernization of the Spanish professional sector. Unión Profesional, which aggregates numerous state-level General Councils, is deploying this training across sectors, aiming to train up to 80,000 professionals in total, ensuring Spanish legal practitioners maintain competitiveness in a digitized global environment.