European payment order

ECOVIS Miškinis, Kvainauskas ir partneriai advokatų kontora

European Council Regulation 1896/2006 of December 12, 2006, creating a European order for payment procedure allows creditors to recover their uncontested civil and commercial claims according to a uniform procedure that operates on the basis of standard forms. The Regulation establishes a European procedure for orders for payment. The procedure simplifies, speeds up and reduces the costs of litigation in cross-border cases concerning uncontested pecuniary claims. The Regulation permits the free circulation of European orders for payment throughout the member states by laying down minimum standards, compliance with which renders unnecessary any intermediate proceedings in the member state of enforcement prior to recognition and enforcement.

The European order for payment procedure applies to civil and commercial matters in cross-border cases, whatever the nature of the court or tribunal. A “cross-border case” is one in which at least one of the parties is domiciled or habitually resident in a member state other than the member state of the court hearing the action. The Regulation applies to all member states except Denmark, in conformity with the Protocol on the position of Denmark annexed to the Treaty on the European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community.

he procedure does not extend to revenue, customs or administrative matters or the liability of the state for acts and omissions in the exercise of state authority (“acta iure imperii”).
The Regulation includes a standard form, to be used to apply for a European order for payment, which must include the following details:
•    the names and addresses of the parties and their representatives;
•    the name and address of the court to which the application is made;
•    the amount of the claim, including the principal and, where applicable, interest, contractual penalties and other costs;
•    the cause of the action, including a description of the circumstances invoked as the basis of the claim and of the interest demanded;
•    the cross-border nature of the case.

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