Law 13/2026 replaces guardianships and curatorships with supports for capacity.

The Official Journal of the Government of Catalonia (DOGC) issue 9722, of 4 August 2026, publishes Law 13/2026, of 3 August, amending the Civil Code of Catalonia on supports for the exercise of legal capacity of persons. The law, enacted by the president of the Government of Catalonia, Salvador Illa i Roca, and signed by the Minister of Justice and Democratic Quality, Ramon Espadaler Parcerisas, puts an end to guardianships and curatorships of adults. It will enter into force six months after its publication, that is, on 4 February 2027.

The law implements Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, in force in Catalonia since 3 May 2008, which recognises the legal capacity of persons with disabilities “on an equal basis with others” and requires that the necessary support be offered to them to exercise it. The immediate starting point is Law 8/2021, which abolished the judicial modification of capacity, and Decree-Law 19/2021, which repealed guardianship and curatorship of adults and commissioned the Government to draft a bill on supports; the new law fulfils this mandate and repeals the decree-law. The reform directly affects families, notaries and third-sector social action organisations, which acquire a central role in the new regime.

From substitute decision-making to support

The law changes the paradigm: the substitute decision-making model is replaced by a model of support in decision-making. Supports are voluntary —they cannot be imposed against the person’s will—, are free of charge as a general rule and must be provided with loyalty, respect for dignity and attention to the person’s preferences. The law recognises a plurality of supports:

• Non-formalised supports: the habitual help of the family and community environment, which replaces the figure of “de facto guardianship”.
• Preventive formalised supports: the mandate contract and the preventive power of attorney, granted by public deed for when the person needs them.
• Assistance: constituted by public deed or by judicial resolution, with three modalities: accompaniment (which is presumed in the absence of specification), cooperation and representative.

In notarial assistance, a prior deed preserves the person’s privacy; in judicial assistance, an assistance plan allows support to be tailored to each person’s needs, resources and capacities.

Safeguards, periodic review and supervision

The law strengthens the control of supports with safeguards, some of them new, to ensure that they are exercised without abuse or conflict of interest:

• The supports constituted judicially must be reviewed ex officio every three years.
• The notarial assistances must be reviewed periodically, with deadlines that cannot exceed three years, by appearance before a notary.
• The rendering of accounts is annual, extendable up to three years and, exceptionally, up to six by judicial decision.
• Preventive mandates and powers of attorney and notarial assistances for cooperation or representation require the appointment of supervisory persons, who act jointly or as a council.
• The inventory of assets is mandatory when there is general asset management, as are the provision of information and the final rendering of accounts; the surety and judicial authorizations complete the system.

What will happen with current judicial measures

Tutorships, curatorships and extended or rehabilitated parental responsibilities constituted before Decree-Law 19/2021 and not yet reviewed are maintained and exercised in accordance with the principles of the new regime. If the interested person requests it, the review must be carried out within one year; if no one does so, the judicial authority or the public prosecutor’s office must carry it out ex officio within three years. The law allows replacing the current judicial assistance with notarial assistance and maintains the effectiveness of preventive powers of attorney and exemplary substitutions granted previously. The Register of non-testamentary tutelary appointments becomes the Register of non-testamentary tutelary appointments and supports for legal capacity.

Third sector, mediation and budget

Three additional provisions set out its practical application:

• The bases for third-sector social action entities to act as collaborators with the Administration of justice.
• The promotion of mediation and other alternative dispute resolution mechanisms arising from supports.
• The instruction to the Government to reserve a specific budget allocation in the budgets of the Generalitat to guarantee the effective application of the supports.

With this law, Catalonia completes the adaptation of its civil law to the model of the United Nations Convention: families will stop promoting proceedings to substitute a person’s will and will begin to articulate supports that respect the autonomy of the person. The six-month margin until its entry into force gives families, notaries and entities time to adapt existing instruments, review powers of attorney and prepare the new notarial support agreements.

Source: Official Journal of the Government of Catalonia, no. 9722, of 4 August 2026, General provisions section, pp. 1-58 (official reference: 26.215.026).