Justice, consumers and gender equality

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Small claims

Overall state of play:

• Commission Proposal: Adopted on 19.11.2013; COM (2013)0794
• Legal act: Adopted; 24.12.2015; Regulation (EU) 2015/2421
• Date of entry into force: 13.01.2016; Date of application: 14.07.2017;

State of play, main conclusions, outlook

The European Small Claims Procedure is a simplified and accelerated civil procedure applicable to cross-border claims of a value of up to EUR 5 000. It is mainly a written procedure, though in some circumstances hearings can be organised. Representation by a lawyer is not required. Judgments are enforceable in all Member States without the need to obtain a declaration of enforceability. These features make the procedure less expensive than ordinary civil proceedings.

The revision extended the scope of the European Small Claims Procedure by increasing from EUR 2.000 to 5.000 the maximum value of claims that can be pursued through the procedure and by extending the definition of a cross-border case. The revision should result in a reduction of litigation costs in cases which before could not be pursued through the European Small Claims Procedure.

Estimated savings and benefits

The initiative could result in a reduction of court proceeding costs by EUR 1 250 per case in cases which would otherwise have to be dealt with under national ordinary civil proceedings.

The initiative provided for further simplifications of the procedure, making it lighter and cheaper for the parties. It enhanced the use of modern communication technologies, in particular for the service of documents and oral hearings, thereby reducing the costs of proceedings by between EUR 300 and EUR 700 per case.

The use of electronic service of documents will shorten court proceedings for at least 9 days.

State of Play:

• Adopted, COM (2013)0794, 19.11.2013

Which objectives did the Commission pursue?

The proposal aimed to correct shortcomings in the original Regulations regarding legal certainty, language barriers and transparency of proceedings and increase the utilisation of the European Small Claims Procedure.

The proposal aimed at a reduction of costs of cross-border litigation and at cutting red tape, in particular for small and medium companies. The proposal provided for an increase of the existing threshold of EUR 2 000 to EUR 10 000, which should allow a considerable increase of its use by these companies.

Moving the number of court cases from ordinary civil proceedings to simplified proceedings could reduce also the workload of courts.

Estimated savings and benefits

The proposal could result in a reduction of court proceeding costs by EUR 1 250 per case in cases which would otherwise have to be dealt with under national ordinary civil proceedings.

The proposal provided for further simplifications of the procedure, making it lighter and cheaper for the parties. It enhanced the use of modern communication technologies, in particular for the service of documents and oral hearings, thereby reducing the costs of proceedings by between EUR 300 and EUR700 per case.

The use of electronic service of documents will shorten court proceedings for at least 9 days.

State of Play:

• Adopted on 24.12.2015;
• Regulation (EU) 2015/2421;
• Date of entry into force: 13.01.2016;
• Date of application: 14.07.2017;

Outcome of Legislative Procedure

The Regulation was adopted on 16 December 2015. While still representing an improvement as compared to the previous situation, the scope of the simplification (REFIT) objectives has been reduced due to the amendments introduced by the Council. In a nutshell, the threshold was increased to EUR 5 000, the cross-border case definition remained unchanged, court fees should not be disproportionate and the use of electronic means of communication is subject to the availability of technical means.

Estimated savings and benefits

Due to the increase of the threshold of the claim amount, a category of cross-border cases where the value of the claim is between EUR 2000 and 5000 could be dealt with under this simplified and accelerated procedure. The accelerated procedure is in principle cheaper than ordinary civil proceedings. Further savings and benefits lie mainly in the extended use of electronic means of communication, both for service of documents and taking of evidence. These savings however, depend on the availability of technical means in each Member State.

No update of the initial estimated savings has been performed.

State of Play:

Implementation reported by Member States

Member States are obliged to submit to the Commission information on particular features of the procedure, like competent courts, availability of appeals, methods of providing assistance in filling in procedural forms, etc. The Commission disseminates this information to the broad public through the European Judicial Atlas in civil and commercial matters, available on the European e-Justice Portal. All Member States provided required information.