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Studies & Degrees in Legal Consultancy for Businesses

Legal consultancy for businesses (asesoría jurídica de empresas in Spanish) trains the lawyers who advise companies on their day-to-day and strategic legal matters, either inside a company's legal department or from a law firm. It is a specialisation rather than a first degree: most students arrive with a law degree and add one year of applied business law.

The syllabus of the programme at the Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir (UCV) shows what students typically learn:

  • company law: corporate bodies, bylaws and structural changes
  • commercial and financial contracts, insolvency and dispute resolution
  • company taxation and tax procedure
  • mergers and acquisitions
  • employment law and administrative law applied to companies
  • legaltech, blockchain and artificial intelligence
  • family businesses, law firm management and the in-house legal department

Qualifications and levels

In Spain the subject is taught at postgraduate level, and the type of qualification matters. Under Royal Decree 822/2021, an official master's degree (máster universitario) has 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. Universities also award their own lifelong-learning qualifications, which must be clearly distinguished from official degrees: the Máster de Formación Permanente (60, 90 or 120 ECTS), the Diploma de Especialización (30 to 59 credits) and the Diploma de Experto (fewer than 30 credits). Business schools add their own master's programmes (school's own qualification).

The UCV programme is a Máster de Formación Permanente en Asesoría Jurídica de Empresas of 60 credits, which include 15 ECTS of internship and a 9 ECTS final project. The 2026-27 edition runs from 18 September 2026 to 28 May 2027 and the published price is €6,750. UCV also combines it with the official Máster Universitario en Abogacía y Procura in a double programme of 150 credits over 16 months, priced at €11,500.

A specialisation in business legal advice is not the same as the right to practise as a lawyer. Under Law 34/2006, law graduates who want to practise in Spain must complete an official master's degree of 60 ECTS plus 30 ECTS of supervised external internship, and then pass the state aptitude exam. At CUNEF Universidad this access master's is an official degree of 90 ECTS, taught on campus in Spanish, and students can add an Advanced Legal Program in International Business Law of 24 ECTS taught in English. IE Law School, the law school of IE University, offers 15-month double master's programmes that combine the access master's with an LL.M. in a chosen specialisation.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists 13 active schools for this subject: 10 in Spain, two in the United States and one in France. The Spanish schools are universities and business schools in cities such as Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, Murcia, Huelva, Granada and Valladolid.

Programmes in Spain are normally taught in Spanish; some schools add modules in English, as CUNEF Universidad does. Check on each school's own site whether the programme is an official master's degree, a Máster de Formación Permanente or a school's own qualification, since the name alone does not show it.

Admission normally requires a law degree. UCV addresses its double programme to holders of a law degree or equivalent and selects candidates through a personal interview. Graduates from outside the European Higher Education Area can be admitted without homologation of their degree, once the university has checked that it is equivalent to a Spanish official degree and gives access to postgraduate study in the country of issue; they present the degree with the Hague Apostille. For official master's degrees in general, Royal Decree 822/2021 requires a Spanish official bachelor's degree (grado) or an equivalent qualification.

Careers

UCV lists the following outlets for its programme: legal adviser to companies, law firms, legal departments of companies and of financial institutions, and technical posts in public bodies such as the CNMV, ESMA and the Banco de España. Graduates who also hold the access master's and pass the state exam can practise as lawyers in Spain. No official employment statistics are published for this specialisation on its own.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a law degree to study legal consultancy for businesses?

Normally yes. The UCV programme, for example, is aimed at holders of a law degree or equivalent, and official master's degrees in Spain require a bachelor's degree or an equivalent qualification.

Does this master's allow me to practise as a lawyer in Spain?

Not by itself. Law 34/2006 requires an official access master's degree with a supervised internship and a state aptitude exam. Some schools combine both programmes in a double master's.

How long does the programme take?

A specialisation master's of 60 ECTS takes one academic year. Double programmes with the access master's take longer: 16 months at UCV and 15 months at IE Law School.

Can I enrol with a foreign law degree?

Yes, in many cases. UCV admits graduates from outside the European Higher Education Area without homologation after checking the level of the degree, although admission does not imply recognition of the degree for other purposes.