European order for payment
Regulation (EC) No 1896/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 establishes a European order for payment procedure. This simplified procedure expedites cross-border disputes concerning uncontested monetary claims in civil and commercial matters, reducing costs and time. A European order for payment is recognised and enforced in all Member States except Denmark without a declaration of enforceability; the European order for payment system is therefore fully operational and effective in both Bulgaria and Italy. In cross-border disputes, the Regulation ensures the free circulation of European orders for payment throughout the Member States by laying down minimum standards whose observance removes the need for any intermediate proceedings in the Member State of enforcement before recognition and enforcement. The procedure is thus fully applicable between Bulgaria and Italy in both directions. 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 party is domiciled or habitually resident in a Member State other than that of the court seised. By express statutory provision, the European order for payment does not apply to revenue, customs or administrative matters, or to a State's liability for acts or omissions in the exercise of public authority. The Regulation expressly excludes matrimonial property regimes; bankruptcy, compositions and analogous proceedings; social security; and claims arising from non-contractual obligations, unless they have been the subject of an agreement between the parties or an acknowledgment of debt, or relate to liquidated debts arising from joint ownership of property. Applying for a European order for payment is relatively straightforward and follows the same format in all EU Member States except Denmark, where the procedure does not apply. The Regulation provides Form A (Annex I) for the application. The monetary claims concerned must, of course, be for a specified amount that is due when the application for a European order for payment is submitted.
Jurisdiction is governed by the relevant Community rules, particularly Regulation (EC) No 44/2001. Where the claim relates to a contract concluded by a consumer for a purpose regarded as outside their trade or profession, and the defendant is the consumer, only the courts of the Member State in which the defendant is domiciled have jurisdiction.
The firm provides full legal assistance both in obtaining European orders for payment in Italy and Bulgaria and in enforcing orders already issued and constituting enforceable titles, to recover commercial debts under Bulgarian and Italian law.
Obtaining an enforceable instrument in Bulgaria, as in Italy, is a necessary condition for attaching assets held by the debtor (Bulgarian or Italian), by third parties (for example Bulgarian or Italian banks), and for enforcing against real estate (whether in Bulgaria or Italy) through the auction of attached properties. It is also possible to obtain precautionary seizures, both in Bulgaria and Italy, to secure satisfaction of a claim.
The different defence strategies are therefore assessed on a case-by-case basis under Bulgarian and Italian law, to optimise the time needed for debt recovery in Bulgaria and Italy.
Before starting any proceedings, it is advisable to invest in a practical assessment of the debtor's assets, whether the debtor is a company (Bulgarian or Italian) or an individual, to avoid fruitless enforcement proceedings.