Municipal sanctioning competition

The Hydrographic Confederation, and not the City Council, is the responsible for monitoring and, if applicable, sanctioning illegal situations such as parking cars in riverbeds and other areas belonging to the public hydraulic domain. This is what the Supreme Court (TS) has declared, which has overturned the sanction imposed on a city council for not preventing cars from parking in the riverbed during a street market.

In this case, the Hydrographic Confederation sanctioned the city council because, according to their criteria, it was responsible for both preventing and sanctioning such parking. The city council, on the other hand, argued that it did not have legal authority over that area because it is not an urban road that belongs to them, but an area under the authority of the hydraulic administration. Initially, the High Court upheld the sanction by considering that municipalities regulate and sanction traffic on urban roads, unless the law assigns those powers to another administration.

However, the TS has made it very clear that, if it is an area like the riverbed, that authority is reserved for the hydraulic administration according to current regulations, so the city council cannot prevent, pursue or sanction behaviors there. In addition, the TS understands that no legal obligation has been breached because there is not even a rule requiring city councils to monitor or sanction parking in these cases. Furthermore, it is noted that the city council tried to prevent parking by placing warning signs in the area.

If you have suffered financial damage for which the Administration may be held responsible, our professionals can demand the corresponding responsibilities for the compensation of the damage caused