European Small Claims Procedure

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The European Small Claims Procedure (also: European small claims procedure , small claims procedures or the Small Claims Procedure abbreviated: EuBagVVO or EUGFVO ) in cross-border cases was established by Regulation (EC) No 861/2007. Of the European Union within the EU (except from Denmark ) introduced on January 1, 2009.

Implementation in national law

The implementation of Regulation (EC) No. 861/2007 on the European procedure for small claims was carried out by the legislators of the respective Union member states . In Germany z. B. significant parts of the regulation 861/2007 in the §§ 1097 ff. To 1109 ZPO were implemented.

Since the regulation restricts the scope for implementation in national law very much, regulation 861/2007 creates a uniform European civil procedure before the courts of the member states of the European Union

  • in cross-border matters;
  • up to a value in dispute of EUR 2,000.00; increased with Regulation (EU) 2015/2421 of December 16, 2015 to Euro 5000, -
  • has to be applied uniformly;
  • provided that the plaintiff so wishes.

The plaintiff can also use the “normal” civil procedure of the relevant Union Member State.

In certain areas (e.g. legal remedies), Regulation 861/2007 deliberately leaves scope for the application of the respective national law of the EU member states.

Procedure

Scope of Regulation (EC) No. 861/2007

The European Small Claims Procedure applies in all EU member states. However, it is expressly not to be applied by Denmark as long as Denmark does not agree to do so.

Jurisdiction

The respective national legislature determines which court is responsible for small claims within the framework of the European procedure.

Germany

In Germany, the competent court is usually the local court. The jurisdiction of the court can e.g. B. result from

  • the place of residence of the defendant,
  • the domicile of the consumer,
  • the domicile of the insurance company or the insured person or the beneficiary,
  • the place of performance or the place of performance of the contractual obligation,
  • the location of the damaging event in the case of an unauthorized act (offense),
  • the place where the immovable property (e.g. real estate ) is located,
  • a jurisdiction agreement between the parties.

Austria

In Austria , the court that is competent for the dispute on which the action is based is competent (i.e. in the majority of cases the local district court at the place of residence of the defendant). The courts have an obligation to provide guidance .

Other Union Member States

The competent court in the EU member states can be found in all official languages ​​of the European Union via the European Judicial Atlas for civil matters.

Excluded procedures

In principle, all civil and commercial matters that are not expressly excluded are included in the European Small Claims Procedure. Certain procedures can therefore expressly not be carried out with the European procedure for small claims (examples):

  • Proceedings with an amount in dispute over EUR 5,000;
  • Disputes regarding matrimonial property law during or after marriage;
  • Civil status matters
  • Inheritance law including the law of wills;
  • Maintenance law;
  • certain disputes arising from tenancies and leases (with the exception of claims for payment / claims for money);
  • Bankruptcy proceedings;
  • Labor law matters;
  • Disputes arising from the granting of social security;
  • court settlements, settlements and similar proceedings;
  • Arbitration;
  • Violation of personal rights;
  • Violation of privacy;
  • Tax matters;
  • Customs matters;
  • administrative matters;
  • Liability of the Union Member State in the context of sovereign administration

Initiation of proceedings

The European procedure for small claims is greatly simplified and is initiated by the plaintiff using a standardized, Europe-wide uniform form (Form A). Representation by a lawyer is not required.

Content of the complaint

In the standard form, the plaintiff must, in the official language of the respective EU member state:

  • present the facts
  • describe the evidence.

Procedure

The European Small Claims Procedure is usually carried out in writing. The competent court will only hold an oral hearing if it deems it necessary or if one of the parties makes a request.

The procedure is divided into several sections, each of which has its own forms:

  • Bringing an action (Form A)
  • Correction and / or rectification of the complaint (Form B)
  • Service on the defendant (Form C)
  • Thirty days for the defendant to reply, from the date of service of Form C.
  • Submit the response of the defendant to the plaintiff within 14 days of the receipt of the response from the defendant in the court;
  • Possibility of counterclaim (by the defendant using Form A);
  • Judgment within 30 days after the respondent's or plaintiff's replies (in the case of a counterclaim) have been received and no further information is required or evidence is taken with an oral hearing;
  • At the request of one of the parties, certificate of issuance of the judgment (Form D);
  • Enforcement of the judgment in accordance with the procedural law provisions of the state in which it is enforced ( called execution in Austria ). The request or demand for a security deposit ( actuarial deposit ) or deposit is not permitted.

If the defendant is in default, a judgment can be made according to the location of the files. Under certain conditions, enforcement of the judgment may be refused by the court in the executing Member State at the request of the defendant.

Procedural costs

The unsuccessful party generally bears the costs of the European Small Claims Procedure. However, only to the extent that this is necessary and proportionate to the amount in dispute.

Appeal

Every judgment and the decision on the costs of the procedure issued in the context of the European Small Claims Procedure can be appealed individually or separately. The prerequisites and deadlines required for this are partly based on national law, as well as whether the legal remedy is to be brought by a lawyer or not (in Austria, for example, a lawyer is required).

enforcement

The judgment and the decision on costs, which have been issued in the context of the European procedure for small claims, are already enforceable before they become final (!). At the request of the unsuccessful party, enforcement of the judgment can be made

  • limited to security measures,
  • made dependent on a security deposit or
  • may also be suspended in exceptional circumstances.

Advantages of the small claims procedure

The main advantages of the procedure for small claims in cross-border disputes is that the procedure is standardized across Europe, making it easier, faster and cheaper as a rule.

Future development

The European Commission had introduced a far-reaching proposal to amend Regulation 861/2007 on the procedure for small claims, which was, however, assessed critically (e.g. by the German Lawyers' Association). In particular, the increase in the thresholds from EURO 2,000 to 5,000 for natural persons and 10,000 for legal persons was seen as disproportionate. On December 3, 2015, following trialogue negotiations to amend Regulations 861/2007 EC and 1896/2006 EC, a compromise was adopted by the Council of Justice Ministers . The upper limit in dispute is now to be increased from EUR 2,000 to EUR 5,000. The ordinance will subsequently be published in the Official Journal and, in accordance with Article 3 of the ordinance, will come into force 20 days after its publication and should be officially in force for the most part (one exception) 18 months after publication.

Other European procedures and legal acts

The European Small Claims Procedure complements the European order for payment procedure . The European order for payment procedure enables creditors to collect (execute) undisputed claims in civil and commercial matters according to a uniform procedure. As with the European Small Claims Procedure, the forms provided for this must be used.

In contrast to the European Small Claims Procedure, the order for payment procedure never requires the presence of either party in court; all the applicant has to do is submit their application and the process runs without any further action on the part of the applicant. In the European order for payment procedure, claims of any amount can be asserted, but unlike the European procedure for small claims only undisputed claims.

Furthermore, within the framework of the recognition and enforcement of decisions, there are Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001 and Regulation (EC) No. 805/2004 and, independently thereof, the Evidence Regulation (Regulation (EC) No. 1206/2001).

literature

  • Haimo Schack: International Civil Procedure Law. 6th edition. 2014, ISBN 978-3-406-66101-3 .
  • Ansgar Staudinger, Björn Steinrötter: European International Civil Procedure Law: Everything “Brussels”, or what? In: Legal worksheets . 4/2012, pp. 241-320. (PDF)
  • Thomas Rauscher (Ed.): European civil procedure and conflict of laws: Brussels I-VO, LugÜbk 2007. Munich 2011, ISBN 978-3-86653-088-1 .

Web links

Wikibooks: Exam Repetitorium Law: Focus Area Private International Law: Responsibility  - Learning and Teaching Materials

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ These are situations in which, as a rule, two EU citizens or a company and a Union citizen are involved who have their company headquarters or residence in different EU member states . The European Small Claims Procedure does not apply if the Union citizens involved or the company are based in the same Union member state.
  2. ↑ Regulation (EC) No. 861/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on the introduction of a European procedure for small claims, OJ. L 199, 1.
  3. ↑ Calculated without interest, costs and expenses at the time of receipt by the competent court.
  4. ↑ Regulation (EU) 2015/2421 of the European Parliament and of the Council of December 16, 2015 amending Regulation (EC) No. 861/2007 introducing a European procedure for small claims and Regulation (EC) No. 1896/2006 introducing a European order for payment procedure OJ L 341/1 of December 24, 2015
  5. ↑ See Art 2, Paragraph 3 and Recital 38 of Regulation 861/2007.
  6. ↑ The local jurisdiction of the court is determined, among other things, according to Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001 (EuGVO).
  7. ↑ European Judicial Atlas ( Memento of the original dated February 13, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / ec.europa.eu
  8. ↑ Calculated without interest, costs and expenses at the time of receipt by the competent court.
  9. ↑ “Small claims” procedure expanded: threshold raised to 5000 euros | News | European Parliament. In: News | European Parliament. Retrieved September 28, 2016 .
  10. ↑ See Art 4 Paragraph 1 of Regulation 861/2007, for Germany: § 1097 Paragraph 1 ZPO.
  11. ↑ Evidence (e.g. documents, witnesses, experts) can also be made available to the court at a later point in time. Evidence can also be presented in a language other than the official language of the relevant Union Member State, although it is advisable to submit it in the official language of the relevant Union Member State.
  12. ↑ Such a request for an oral hearing can be rejected by the court if it allows the oral hearing to take into account z. B. Art 6 ECHR (right to a fair trial) does not consider necessary.
  13. ↑ See: Art 17 VO 861/2007. In Germany and Austria with a so-called calling . In Germany only possible for a complaint amount of more than EUR 600.00 (§§ 511, 511a ZPO).
  14. ↑ A declaration of enforceability is no longer required, but the confirmation of the respective national court that issued the judgment is sufficient.
  15. ↑ Commission proposal of November 19, 2013.
  16. ↑ See e.g. B. Opinion 6/2014 ( Memento of the original from April 3, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. of the German Lawyers' Association by the Committee on Civil Procedure Law. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / anwaltverein.de
  17. ^ Proposal for a regulation , A8-0140 / 2015.
  18. ↑ Regulation (EC) No. 1896/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of December 12, 2006 on the introduction of a European order for payment procedure.