A Madrid court has accepted Julio Iglesias’s honour claim against Yolanda Díaz and ordered the deputy prime minister to respond within 20 working days. He is seeking €50,000 and a public retraction over comments about allegations by former employees.
Julio Iglesias is seeking €50,000 and a public retraction over remarks he says damaged his reputation. The claim concerns comments by Yolanda Díaz about allegations made by the singer’s former employees. Iglesias’s lawyers say the remarks treated the allegations as established facts, linked him to sexual abuse and labour exploitation, and accused him of systematic breaches of fundamental rights.
A Madrid court has admitted the case and given Díaz 20 working days to respond. The proceedings will follow the rules for an ordinary civil trial and receive priority handling because the claim concerns a fundamental right. Iglesias is seeking civil protection of his honour and privacy, along with control over his image. The case does not determine criminal responsibility for the former employees’ allegations.
The decree was signed by court legal officer Carmen Várez and reported by OKDIARIO. The case is assigned to Court No. 33, led by magistrate María Teresa de la Asunción. The Ministry of Justice’s public prosecutor must also take part.
Iglesias’s lawyers say Díaz attributed allegations of sexual abuse and labour exploitation to him. They also argue that she linked him to systematic breaches of fundamental rights and failed to meet the duties attached to a senior state office. The demand invokes rights to honour and privacy, as well as control over his own image.
The court says Díaz must respond through a procurador and a lawyer. If she does not appear within the deadline, she may be declared in procedural default. The decree says she can request legal aid within three days if she lacks the means to pay. An appeal for reconsideration is available within five days after a €25 deposit; filing it will not suspend the proceedings.
The dispute stems from remarks made in January. Díaz shared a news report about the former employees’ accusations on Bluesky on 13 January. The following day she appeared on La Hora de la 1 on RTVE, where the women’s complaint was discussed. The two former employees, identified in Spanish media as Laura and Rebeca, alleged that events took place in 2021 at Iglesias’s properties in the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic.
This was not Iglesias’s first attempt to bring the dispute before a court. Díaz had rejected an earlier conciliation request, saying her words had not damaged his reputation. Iglesias then went to the Supreme Court because Díaz is an elected official with special jurisdiction. On 29 September, the court’s Civil Chamber declined to hear the claim, ruling that it belonged before the civil sections of the courts of instance. The Supreme Court’s decision turned on jurisdiction, not the merits of Iglesias’s complaint, and the case was subsequently directed to a Madrid court.
The wider dispute over the former employees’ allegations remains separate. Spain’s Fiscalía initially archived the materials in January, citing a lack of jurisdiction because the alleged events took place outside Spain; the decision did not resolve the allegations on their merits. The women later filed a new criminal complaint at the Audiencia Nacional, and the Fiscalía now supports the court examining it. The complaint refers to alleged human trafficking and sexual violence. It also cites degrading treatment. Separate allegations concern assault and labour offences. The Fiscalía had questioned Laura and Rebeca in January in connection with the earlier proceedings. The judge, Antonio Piña, must now consider whether there are grounds to investigate the new complaint. Iglesias has denied the accusations and sought the closure of the criminal proceedings.
In a separate case, Iglesias has filed a complaint against journalists at elDiario.es, including its director, Ignacio Escolar. It alleges insult and slander. It also cites an offence against moral integrity. Escolar has been placed under investigation over those events.
The legal dispute comes amid other cases involving prominent political figures, including the separate Begoña Gómez proceedings covered by RUSSPAIN.
