CHAPTER 5GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 40Legalisation or other similar formality

No legalisation or other similar formality shall be required in the context of this Regulation.

Article 41Legal representation

Representation by a lawyer or other legal professional shall not be mandatory in proceedings to obtain a Preservation Order. In proceedings pursuant to Chapter 4, representation by a lawyer or another legal professional shall not be mandatory unless, under the law of the Member State of the court or authority with which the application for a remedy is lodged, such representation is mandatory irrespective of the nationality or domicile of the parties.

Article 42Court fees

The court fees in proceedings to obtain a Preservation Order or a remedy against an Order shall not be higher than the fees for obtaining an equivalent national order or a remedy against such a national order.

Article 43Costs incurred by the banks

1.

A bank shall be entitled to seek payment or reimbursement from the creditor or the debtor of the costs incurred in implementing a Preservation Order only where, under the law of the Member State of enforcement, the bank is entitled to such payment or reimbursement in relation to equivalent national orders.

2.

Fees charged by a bank to cover the costs referred to in paragraph 1 shall be determined taking into account the complexity of the implementation of the Preservation Order, and may not be higher than the fees charged for the implementation of equivalent national orders.

3.

Fees charged by a bank to cover the costs of providing account information pursuant to Article 14 may not be higher than the costs actually incurred and, where applicable, not higher than the fees charged for the provision of account information in the context of equivalent national orders.

Article 44Fees charged by authorities

Fees charged by any authority or other body in the Member State of enforcement which is involved in the processing or enforcement of a Preservation Order, or in providing account information pursuant to Article 14, shall be determined on the basis of a scale of fees or other set of rules established in advance by each Member State and transparently setting out the applicable fees. In establishing that scale or other set of rules, a Member State may take into account the amount of the Order and the complexity involved in processing it. Where applicable, the fees may not be higher than the fees charged in connection with equivalent national orders.

Article 45Time frames

Where, in exceptional circumstances, it is not possible for the court or the authority involved to respect the time frames provided for in Article 14(7), Article 18, Article 23(2), the second subparagraph of Article 25(3), Article 28(2), (3) and (6), Article 33(3) and Article 36(4) and (5), the court or authority shall take the steps required by those provisions as soon as possible.

Article 46Relationship with national procedural law

1.

All procedural issues not specifically dealt with in this Regulation shall be governed by the law of the Member State in which the procedure takes place.

2.

The effects of the opening of insolvency proceedings on individual enforcement actions, such as the enforcement of a Preservation Order, shall be governed by the law of the Member State in which the insolvency proceedings have been opened.

Article 47Data protection

1.

Personal data which are obtained, processed or transmitted under this Regulation shall be adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purpose for which they were obtained, processed or transmitted, and shall be used only for that purpose.

2.

The competent authority, the information authority and any other entity responsible for enforcing the Preservation Order may not store the data referred to in paragraph 1 beyond the period necessary for the purpose for which they were obtained, processed or transmitted, which in any event shall not be longer than six months after the proceedings have ended, and shall, during that period, ensure the appropriate protection of those data. This paragraph does not apply to data processed or stored by courts in the exercise of their judicial functions.

Article 48Relationship with other instruments

This Regulation is without prejudice to:

  1. (a)
    Regulation (EC) No 1393/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council14, except as provided for in Article 10(2), Article 14(3) and (6), Article 17(5), Article 23(3) and (6), Article 25(2) and (3), Article 28(1), (3), (5) and (6), Article 29, Article 33(3), Article 36(2) and (4), and Article 49(1) of this Regulation;
  2. (b)

    Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012;

  3. (c)

    Regulation (EC) No 1346/2000;

  4. (d)

    Directive 95/46/EC, except as provided for in Articles 14(8) and 47 of this Regulation;

  5. (e)
    Regulation (EC) No 1206/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council15;
  6. (f)

    Regulation (EC) No 864/2007, except as provided for in Article 13(4) of this Regulation.

Article 49Languages

1.

Any documents listed in points (a) and (b) of Article 28(5) to be served on the debtor which are not in the official language of the Member State in which the debtor is domiciled or, where there are several official languages in that Member State, the official language or one of the official languages of the place where the debtor is domiciled or another language which he understands, shall be accompanied by a translation or transliteration into one of those languages. Documents listed in point (c) of Article 28(5) shall not be translated unless the court decides, exceptionally, that specific documents need to be translated or transliterated in order to enable the debtor to assert his rights.

2.

Any documents to be addressed under this Regulation to a court or competent authority may also be in any other official language of the institutions of the Union, if the Member State concerned has indicated that it can accept such other language.

3.

Any translation made under this Regulation shall be done by a person qualified to do translations in one of the Member States.

Article 50Information to be provided by Member States

1.

By 18 July 2016, the Member States shall communicate the following information to the Commission:

(a)

the courts designated as competent to issue a Preservation Order (Article 6(4));

(b)

the authority designated as competent to obtain account information (Article 14);

(c)

the methods of obtaining account information available under their national law (Article 14(5));

(d)

the courts with which an appeal is to be lodged (Article 21);

(e)

the authority or authorities designated as competent to receive, transmit and serve the Preservation Order and other documents under this Regulation (point (14) of Article 4);

(f)

the authority competent to enforce the Preservation Order in accordance with Chapter 3;

(g)

the extent to which joint and nominee accounts can be preserved under their national law (Article 30);

(h)

the rules applicable to amounts exempt from seizure under national law (Article 31);

(i)

whether, under their national law, banks are entitled to charge fees for the implementation of equivalent national orders or for providing account information and, if so, which party is liable, provisionally and finally, to pay those fees (Article 43);

(j)

the scale of fees or other set of rules setting out the applicable fees charged by any authority or other body involved in the processing or enforcement of the Preservation Order (Article 44);

(k)

whether any ranking is conferred on equivalent national orders under national law (Article 32);

(l)

the courts or, where applicable, the enforcement authority, competent to grant a remedy (Article 33(1), Article 34(1) or (2));

(m)

the courts with which an appeal is to be lodged, the period of time, if prescribed, within which such an appeal must be lodged under national law and the event marking the start of that period (Article 37);

(n)

an indication of court fees (Article 42); and

(o)

the languages accepted for translations of the documents (Article 49(2)).

The Member States shall apprise the Commission of any subsequent changes to that information.

2.

The Commission shall make the information publicly available through any appropriate means, in particular through the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters.

Article 51Establishment and subsequent amendment of the forms

The Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing and subsequently amending the forms referred to in Articles 8(1), 10(2), 19(1), 25(1), 27(2), 29(2) and 36(1), the second subparagraph of Article 36(5) and Article 37. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 52(2).

Article 52Committee procedure

1.

The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

2.

Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Article 53Monitoring and review

1.

By 18 January 2022, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament, to the Council and to the European Economic and Social Committee a report on the application of this Regulation, including an evaluation as to whether:

(a)

financial instruments should be included in the scope of this Regulation, and

(b)

amounts credited to the debtor’s account after the implementation of the Preservation Order could be made subject to preservation under the Order.

The report shall be accompanied, if appropriate, by a proposal to amend this Regulation and an assessment of the impact of the amendments to be introduced.

2.

For the purposes of paragraph 1, the Member States shall collect and make available to the Commission upon request information on:

(a)

the number of applications for a Preservation Order and the number of cases in which the Order was issued;

(b)

the number of applications for a remedy pursuant to Articles 33 and 34 and, if possible, the number of cases in which the remedy was granted; and

(c)

the number of appeals lodged pursuant to Article 37 and, if possible, the number of cases in which such an appeal was successful.