Kissing a woman's hand can be sexual assault, Spanish court finds

Spain's Supreme Court has ruled that a man kissing the hand of a woman without her consent can constitute sexual assault.

In a case that dates back to 2023, a man approached a woman at a bus stop in Madrid, kissed her hand and made gestures to suggest she follow him and that he would pay her.

A court found the man guilty of sexual assault and fined him €1,620 (£1,400; $1,858), a sanction that was upheld by Madrid's provincial tribunal.

The convicted man took the case to the Supreme Court, arguing that there had been no violence or intimidation in his interaction with the woman.

According to court documents, he argued that the victim "might have felt bothered, offended, victim of an intrusion into her comfort zone, but there was never a clear risk for her sexual integrity".

He also argued that the incident had occurred in a public place, near a police station and in full daylight. At the most, his legal team said, his actions constituted the lesser crime of harassment of a sexual nature in a public place.

However, in its ruling, the Supreme Court found that the encounter had exceeded mere harassment, stating that there had been "a clear sexual component because he even kissed [her hand]."

A woman, the court added, "cannot tolerate being subjected to a man taking her hand and kissing her without consent in acts that have a clear and obvious sexual connotation".

Two of the magistrates issued dissenting votes, in the belief that the incident had not been a case of sexual assault.

"A kiss (or two) on the hand of another person is, in our culture, a form of greeting, now obsolete," they said, according to court documents.

They added that, along with kissing someone on the cheek or shaking their hand, these "are not acts of a sexual nature".

The issue of sexual consent has been at the centre of intense debate in Spain in recent years.

Legislation approved in 2022, known as the "Only yes means yes law" placed emphasis on the need for consent and eliminated the need to prove that there had been violence or intimidation in order for an encounter to be deemed sexual assault.

In 2023, the president of Spain's football federation, Luis Rubiales, sparked enormous controversy when he celebrated the victory of the women's team in the World Cup final by kissing player Jenni Hermoso on the lips.

He said the kiss had been consensual, a claim she denied. The case went to court and in 2025 Rubiales was found guilty of sexual assault and fined.