Case C‑21/17

Catlin Europe SE

v

O.K. Trans Praha spol. s r. o.

(Request for a preliminary ruling from the Nejvyšší soud)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling — Judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters — European order for payment procedure — Regulation (EC) No 1896/2006 — Issue of an order for payment together with the application for the order — No translation of the application for the order — European order for payment declared enforceable — Application for review after expiry of the period for opposition — Service of judicial and extrajudicial documents — Regulation (EC) No 1393/2007 — Applicability — Article 8 and Annex II — Informing the addressee of the right to refuse to accept a document instituting proceedings that has not been translated — Lack of the standard form — Consequences)

Summary — Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber), 6 September 2018

1. Judicial cooperation in civil matters—Service of judicial and extrajudicial documents—Regulation No 1393/2007—Refusal to accept the document—Right conferred on the addressee of the document in certain circumstances—Obligation of the receiving agency to inform the addressee of his right, using the standard form in Annex II to that regulation—Scope—No translation of the application for the order annexed to the order for payment—Included

   (European Parliament and Council Regulations No 1896/2006, Art 12(2), and No 1393/2007, Art. 8(1) and Annex II)

2. Judicial cooperation in civil matters—European order for payment procedure—Regulation No 1896/2006—Service on the defendant of a European order for payment—No translation of the application for the order annexed to the order for payment—Regulation No 1393/2007—Refusal to accept the document—Obligation of the receiving agency to inform the addressee of his right, using the standard form in Annex II to that regulation—Consequences of the omission of that formal requirement and regularisation of the procedure

   (European Parliament and Council Regulations No 1896/2006 and No 1393/2007, Art. 8(1) and Annex II)

1.  See the text of the decision.

   (see paras 42-48)

2.  Regulation (EC) No 1896/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 creating a European order for payment procedure and Regulation (EC) No 1393/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 November 2007 on the service in the Member States of judicial and extrajudicial documents in civil or commercial matters (service of documents), and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1348/2000 must be interpreted as meaning that, where a European order for payment is served on the defendant without the application for the order, annexed to the order, being written in or accompanied by a translation into a language he is deemed to understand, as required by Article 8(1) of Regulation No 1393/2007, the defendant must be duly informed, by means of the standard form in Annex II to Regulation No 1393/2007, of his right to refuse to accept the document in question.

   If that formal requirement is omitted, the procedure must be regularised in accordance with the provisions of Regulation No 1393/2007, by communicating to the addressee the standard form in Annex II to that regulation.

   In that case, as a result of the procedural irregularity affecting the service of the European order for payment together with the application for the order, the order does not become enforceable and the period in which the defendant may lodge a statement of opposition cannot start to run, so that Article 20 of Regulation No 1896/2006 cannot apply.

   (see paras 55-57, operative part)