Status of Digitalisation of ESCP Enforcement Procedures
There are not any specific digitalised processes concerning the enforcement of the ESCP judgements in Sweden. There is however possible to use a digital form for submitting the judgement to Kronofogden. It can be found here: https://kronofogden.se/other-languages/english-engelska/want-to-get-paid/application-to-get-paid-execution
The digital solution does demand a foreign eID from one of these countries: Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Croatia, Latvia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, The Czech Republic or Germany. For parties outside of these countries, the application for enforcement must be sent by regular mail. Which Kronofogd the form/documents should be sent to, depends on where the person/business you seek the enforcement against is located.
ESCP Procedural Aspects
1. Competent Enforcement Authority
The enforcement of ESCP judgments is administrated by “Kronofogden” – The Enforcement Service, see “Utsökingsbalken” (1981:774) – The Enforcement Code (TEC)[1] 1. chapter Section 3.
As a main rule, there is no need to include the first instance courts in the enforcement procedure.
2. Rules on Service
The enforcement procedure starts with the party seeking enforcement sending in the relevant documents to Kronofogden. In this process Form D must be handed in with the ruling in question, see TEC chapter 2 section 2. The applicant should also state the measure that he requests, see TEC chapter 2 section 2. If it is necessary to translate documents handed in by the parties it can be done by Kronofogden, see TEC chapter 2 section 8 together with Rättegångsbalken (1942:740) (The Swedish Code of Judicial Procedure “SCJP”[2] chapter 33 section 9. The state/Kronofogden will in these cases cover the costs for this translation. If the applicant is a professional party, they may have to translate the documents themselves. Kronofogden may never refuse an application on the basis that the documents are in a non-official language.
The enforcement procedure is mainly conducted in writing, but it is possible to have oral meetings/communication, see TEC chapter 2 section 10. Kronofogden will contact the debtor and ask that he acts according to the judgement, for example to pay debts. If this does not happen, Kronofogden will make an overview of the debtors properties. Thereafter, Kronofogden may seize the assets and sell them. If the parties disagree about the validity of the grounds for enforcement there will be an oral hearing, conducted by Kronofogden.
3. Language of the Certificate and Documents to be Appended
The official language of the enforcement authorities is Swedish. The relevant documents, usually the judgement from another EU country and Form D, can also be translated into English.
4. Enforcement Fees
Before Kronofogden starts the enforcement procedure, a yearly fee of 600 SEK (approx. €56) must be paid, see TEC chapter 17 section 1. The amount is the same for most enforcement procedures in Sweden.
If a party seeks enforcement of a ESCP judgement, the applicant is responsible for covering the states costs related to the enforcement procedure. This is the rule concerning all enforcement procedures in Sweden, see TEC chapter 17 section 2.
5. Refusal, Stay, or Limitation of ESCP Enforcement Procedures
Kronofogden is responsible for deciding on whether there should be given a stay, a refusal or a limitation of enforcement. This is the rule for ordinary enforcement procedures and is also applicable for the ESCP enforcement procedures.
The enforcement can be conditioned on certain terms. These are listed in TEC chapter 3 section 3-section 10. An example can be found in TEC chapter 3 section 6, where a debtor of a monetary claim can put up security to stay the enforcement procedure. The security must cover the amount of the judgement and interest. This rule (and the rules in general) must be interpreted in light of ESCP article 15 and 23, see LESCP section 7.
Critical Assessment
The enforcement of ESCP judgements does not seem to have caused special problems in Sweden, compared to other cross border cases. This might be because of lack of special rules concerning the ESCP judgements enforcement procedures.
Generally, it would however be positive if there was a clearer demand for digital solutions for enforcement of ESCP judgements. More similar solutions would make the process quicker, and more accessible across borders.
[1] The official translation by the Swedish government: https://www.regeringen.se/rattsliga-dokument/departementsserien-och-promemorior/2002/01/ds-200245/
[2] The official translation by the Swedish government: https://www.regeringen.se/rattsliga-dokument/departementsserien-och-promemorior/1998/01/ds-199865/