Implementation of Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Catalan legal system

The assumption of exclusive legislative competence in civil matters by the autonomous community of Catalonia may come as a surprise to outside observers, but it derives directly from the institutional framework established in the Spanish Constitution of 19781 (hereinafter, C78.), which allowed not only the preservation of the so-called historic rights but also their modification and development. This recognition affected not only Catalonia but also other Spanish territories, such as Aragon, the Balearic Islands, the Basque Country, Galicia and Navarre.