Begoña Gómez, spouse of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, is now represented by criminal lawyer Jaime Campaner as proceedings move toward a jury trial in Madrid. Campaner was identified as her defence counsel in October 2026 and is known for handling complex criminal proceedings. Gómez had previously been represented by Antonio Camacho.
The Madrid Provincial Court narrowed the case on 13 July 2026. It kept proceedings against Gómez and her former Moncloa adviser, Cristina Álvarez, over alleged influence peddling and embezzlement, while discarding accusations of business corruption and misappropriation. Businessman Juan Carlos Barrabés was removed from the jury-trial phase but remained under investigation over the legality of public-contract awards. The court also lifted precautionary measures imposed on Gómez. These included passport retention and a travel ban; she was also freed from periodic reporting requirements.
On 21 September, investigating judge Juan Carlos Peinado ordered the opening of oral proceedings against Gómez. The trial is to take place before a popular jury at the Madrid Provincial Court, but no hearing date had been set and jurors had not yet been selected in the cited reporting. The panel is expected to comprise nine citizens and two alternates. A professional judge will preside. Jurors will decide the facts and verdict; the judge will issue the formal judgment and determine any sentence.
The allegations concern, in part, Gómez’s work on a chair and software project at the Complutense University of Madrid and her alleged use of Álvarez, a paid employee of the Presidency of the Government, for tasks outside her institutional duties. The embezzlement theory includes claims that Gómez requested and used Álvarez for non-official work. A separate line of inquiry concerned software developed through the university project. The prosecution sought acquittal for Gómez and Álvarez, arguing that the conduct did not constitute a criminal offence and that no illicit economic benefit or loss to public assets had been established. A popular-accusation group sought 13 years in prison for Gómez and six years for Álvarez.
The proceedings have drawn national attention because Gómez is the prime minister’s spouse and the case is going before a popular jury. Debate over the intersection of politics and the courts has also followed other investigations involving political parties. Scrutiny of judicial processes and party-linked investigations was evident when PSOE staff testified about internal authorizations at the party’s Madrid headquarters, renewing debate over the relationship between politics and the courts. Jury selection and the hearing schedule are the next procedural milestones.
