Directive 2003/8 / EC on legal aid in disputes with cross-border implications

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Directive 2003/8 / EC

Title: Council Directive 2003/8 / EC of January 27, 2003 to improve access to justice in disputes with cross-border implications by laying down common minimum rules for legal aid in such disputes
Designation:
(not official) 		Legal Aid Directive
EU Legal Aid Directive
Scope: EU
Legal matter: Civil law , commercial law
Basis: EC Treaty , in particular Article 61 letter c and Article 67
Procedure overview: European Commission
European Parliament
IPEX Wiki
To be
implemented in national law by: 		November 30, 2004 with the exception of pre-litigation legal advice with regard to an out-of-court dispute settlement
May 30, 2006 complete
Reference: OJ L 26 of 31.1.2003, pp. 41-47
Full text Consolidated version (not official)
basic version
The regulation must have been implemented in national law.
Please note the information on the current version of legal acts of the European Union !

The Directive 2003/8 / EC of 27 January 2003 on legal aid in cross-border disputes, to civil and commercial matters is an internationally-civil procedural directive (short: EU ProzesskostenhilfeRL).

Directive 2003/8 / EC gives Union citizens who have to lead a legal dispute with a company, service provider, employer or other person in another Union member state non-discriminatory access to the necessary financial support or facilities. This enables him to defend his rights effectively. This will consistently through the access of European Union citizens with a different residence than in the Union Member State in which they have to perform the procedure, the national legal aid (including legal aid called) allows.

Legal basis

At its meeting in Tampere ( Finland ) on 15 and 16 October 1999, the European Council asked the Council of Ministers to adopt minimum standards to ensure an adequate level of legal aid in cross-border cases in all countries of the Union .

The Directive 2003/8 / EC, which was then drawn up and approved by the Council of Ministers, was then based on the Treaty establishing the European Community , in particular on Article 61 (c) and Article 67, to establish the area of ​​freedom, security and justice in which the Free movement of people is guaranteed, to be maintained and developed.

scope

This access to national legal aid for civil and commercial matters with cross-border implications is also the

  • pre-litigation legal advice with regard to out-of-court dispute resolution,
  • out-of-court proceedings, arbitration proceedings,
  • the provision of legal counsel when the court is called upon and
  • legal representation in court by a lawyer and
  • the grant or exemption from court costs and other fees or costs,
  • Enforcement of authentic documents in another Member State.

includes. Whether the legal aid granted to EU citizens should also include the costs incurred and imposed by the opposing party in the event of loss of legal action is left to the law of the respective EU member state.

Legal aid must be granted by Union Member States for the entire procedure, including the costs of enforcing a judgment and other legal remedies. In certain proceedings, the Member States of the Union can provide that legal aid is generally not granted.

Member States of the Union may, under certain circumstances, require the beneficiaries of legal aid to contribute appropriately to the costs of the litigation, provided their financial circumstances permit.

Access

In order to receive legal aid in disputes with cross-border implications, Union citizens must fill out and submit an appropriate standard form for applying for legal aid. Directive 2003/8 / EC provides for two standard forms for this:

  • a form for applying for legal aid and
  • a form for submitting legal aid applications.

These can also be called up online in all official languages ​​of the European Union . These standard forms for applications for legal aid and for submitting applications for legal aid are intended to simplify and speed up the procedures.

Applications for legal aid can be made free of charge

  • with the competent authority of the Member State in which the applicant is domiciled or habitually resident
  • with the competent authority of the Member State of the place of jurisdiction or the Member State of enforcement

be submitted (Art 13 RL 2003/8 / EG). Access can be restricted by the member states of the Union through threshold values. These thresholds determine when, based on various objective factors such as income, assets or family situation, a person is able to bear the costs himself.

Member States can refuse legal aid in the case of wanton proceedings, those with obviously little chance of success and the like.

Structure of the guideline

Directive 2003/8 / EC consists of 14 recitals and 23 articles in five chapters: 

Kapitel I: ANWENDUNGSBEREICH UND BEGRIFFSBESTIMMUNGEN

Article 1: Objectives and scope

Article 2: Cross-border disputes 

KAPITEL II: ANSPRUCH AUF PROZESSKOSTENHILFE

Article 3: Right to legal aid

Article 4: Prohibition of Discrimination 

KAPITEL III: VORAUSSETZUNGEN UND UMFANG DER PROZESSKOSTEN

Article 5: Conditions for financial circumstances

Article 6: Conditions for the content of the dispute

Article 7: Costs related to the cross-border nature of the dispute

Article 8: Costs to be borne by the Member State of domicile or habitual residence

Article 9: Continuation of legal aid

Article 10: Extrajudicial proceedings

Article 11: Public documents 

KAPITEL IV: VERFAHREN

Article 12: Competent authority to grant legal aid

Article 13: Submission and submission of legal aid applications

Article 14: Competent Authorities and Languages

Article 15: Processing of applications

Article 16: Standard Form 

KAPITEL V: SCHLUSSBESTIMMUNGEN

Article 17: Committee

Article 18: Information

Article 19: More favorable provisions

Article 20: Relationship with Other Conventions

Article 21: Implementation in national law

Article 22: Entry into force

Article 23: Addressees

Criminal proceedings

Legal aid in criminal proceedings is not (yet) covered by this directive. The granting of legal aid in criminal proceedings is currently regulated by each EU Member State within its jurisdiction.

There is therefore currently no EU legislation on criminal proceedings and legal aid with cross-border implications. However, the European Commission has put forward several proposals (legislative package):

  • Interim Legal Aid Directive,
  • Directive on the protection of children in criminal proceedings,
  • Guideline to strengthen certain aspects of the presumption of innocence and the right to be present at the trial
  • Recommendation on the right to legal aid,
  • Recommendation for the protection of particularly vulnerable people.

Relationship to other conventions

According to Recital 32 of Directive 2003/8 / EC, Directive 2003/8 / EC changes “the 1977 Agreement and the Additional Protocol to the European Agreement on the Transmission of Applications for Approval of Legal Aid […]” in “Relationships between the Member States and third countries that are parties to the 1977 Convention or the Protocol “not changed.

"On the other hand, in relations between the Member States [with the exception of Denmark] this Directive takes precedence over the provisions of the 1977 Convention and the Protocol". This also applies to the Hague Agreement of October 25, 1980 on the facilitation of international access to justice.

literature

  • Serge-Daniel Jastrow: EC Directive 8/2003 - Cross-border legal aid in civil matters. In: MDR . 2004, p. 75 ff.
  • Rolf A. Schütz: The international civil procedure law in the ZPO. De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2011, ISBN 978-3-11-025083-1 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ According to the correction of Directive 2002/8 / EC, OJ L32 / 15, the correct text of the Directive is: 2003/8 / EC. The directive can still be called up in the many legal databases under 2002/8 / EC, as no consolidated version has been published. The correct title: 2003/8 / EG is used throughout. The original Directive 2002/8 / EC is one of the Commission of February 6, 2002 amending Directives 72/168 / EEC and 72/180 / EEC on the definition of characteristics and minimum requirements for the testing of varieties of vegetables and agricultural plant species , OJ L 37/7.
  2. ↑ Long text: Council Directive 2003/8 / EC of January 27, 2003 to improve access to justice in disputes with cross-border implications by laying down common minimum requirements for legal aid in such disputes. OJ L26 / 41.
  3. ↑ Member States with the exception of Denmark - Art 1 Para. 3 of Directive 2003/8 / EC.
  4. ↑ See Art 4 of RL 2003/08 / EG. According to Article 19 of the Directive, the EU member states can provide or grant more favorable provisions for applicants and recipients of legal aid than provided for in the Directive.
  5. ↑ According to Recital 13, Directive 2003/8 / EC also includes persons from third countries who have their legal habitual residence in a Union member state. The directive does not apply to EU citizens who are resident in Denmark , as Denmark has declared that it does not want to take part in the implementation of this directive (see Recital 34 of Directive 2003/8 / EC).
  6. ↑ See Art 2 RL 2003/8 / EG.
  7. ↑ See Recital 3 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  8. ↑ See also Recital 1 ff of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  9. ↑ See Recital 9 and Art. 1 Para. 2 of Directive 2003/08 / EC. The RL 2003/8 / EG therefore does not apply to tax and customs matters and not to administrative matters.
  10. ↑ See Recital 11 and Art. 3 Para. 2 lit. a) of RL 2003/08 / EG.
  11. ↑ See Recital 21 and Art 10 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  12. ↑ See Art 3 Paragraph 2 lit. b) and Art 7 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  13. ↑ See Recital 22 and Art 11 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  14. ↑ See Recital 12 and Art 3 Paragraph 2 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  15. ↑ See Recital 20 and Art 9 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  16. ↑ See Art 3 Para. 3 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  17. ↑ See Art 3 Paragraph 4 and Paragraph 5 and Art 5 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  18. ↑ See Recital 28 and Art 16 of Directive 2003/08 / EC. See also Commission Decision 2005/630 / EC of August 26, 2005 on the creation of a form for submitting applications for legal aid pursuant to Council Directive 2003/8 / EC, Official Journal L 225 of August 31, 2005, and the decision of Commission of 9 November 2004 for the creation of a form for applications for legal aid in accordance with Council Directive 2003/8 / EC on improving access to justice in disputes with cross-border implications by establishing common minimum rules for legal aid in such disputes (announced under file number K (2004) 4285), Official Journal L 365 of December 10, 2004.
  19. ↑ See Recital 14 ff of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  20. ↑ See Recital 17 and Art 6 of Directive 2003/08 / EC.
  21. ↑ European Agreement on the Transmission of Applications for Legal Aid of January 27, 1977 ( Strasbourg ).
  22. ↑ Moscow Additional Protocol to the European Agreement on the Transmission of Applications for Legal Aid.
  23. ↑ See also Art 20 of RL 2003/8 / EG. The 1977 European Convention on the Transmission of Applications for Legal Aid continues to apply between Denmark and several Member States.
  24. ↑ See Art 20 lit. b) of RL 2003/8 / EG.