Suchergebnisse

This report outlines the rules on the taking and using of evidence in Austrian civil procedure law. On the basis of principles such as the free disposition of parties, the attenuated inquisitorial principle or the principles of orality and directness, the judge and the parties form a "working group" when investigating the matter in dispute. The Austrian concept of an active judge, however, goes along with the judge's duty to do case-management and especially to induce a truthful fact-finding using judicial discretion. While only five means of proof (documents, witnesses, expert opinions, evidence by inspection and the examination of parties) are explicitly listed the Austrian civil procedure code, there is no numerus clausus regarding the means of evidence. Evidence may be freely assessed by the judge.

In jüngster Zeit haben zwei Gesetzgebungsakte das österreichische Insolvenzrecht erheblich verändert: Zum einen hat die "Gesamtreform des Exekutionsrechts" (GREx) die Schnittstelle zwischen Einzel- und Gesamtvollstreckung entscheidend umgestaltet. Zum anderen hat die Umsetzung der europäischen Restrukturierungs- und Insolvenzrichtlinie die Rahmenbedingungen für die Restschuldbefreiung nicht nur für Unternehmer, sondern auch für Verbraucher verbessert. Dieser Artikel gibt einen detaillierten Überblick über das Verbraucherinsolvenzverfahren in Österreich und geht hierbei auch auf die Tätigkeiten der anerkannten Schuldenberatungsstellen ein. ; Recently, two legislative acts have significantly changed Austrian insolvency law: Firstly, the overall reform of enforcement law ("Gesamtreform des Exekutionsrechts – GREx") has drastically altered the interface between individual and general enforcement. And secondly, the implementation of the European Restructuring and Insolvency Directive has improved the framework for debt discharge not only for entrepreneurs but also for consumers. This article provides a detailed overview of the consumer insolvency proceedings in Austria and also addresses the activities of the recognised debt counselling agencies.

The European Small Claims Regulation has been offering an alternative proceeding for small claims litigation in cross-border cases for almost four years now. Along with several important procedural simplifications, however, came considerable restrictions regarding the principles of public and oral proceedings established in the European Convention on Human Rights and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Critics claim especially that the court's power to omit any oral hearing in a Small Claims Procedure cannot fulfill the requirements of the Convention and the Charter. This question is going to be further investigated in the course of this paper. Before doing so, however, a rough overview of the scope, of some general principals and of the conduct of the European Small Claims Procedure shall be provided. ; Uredba o evropskem postopku v sporih majhne vrednosti že skoraj štiri leta ponuja alernativni postopek v čezmejnih sporih majhnih vrednosti. Poleg številnih pomembnih postopkovnih poenostavitev pa vendarle obstajajo znatne omejitve glede načela javnosti in ustnega postopka, kot je to predvideno v Evropski konvenciji o človekovih pravicah in v Listini o temeljnih pravicah Evropske unije. Kritiki zlasti menijo, da pristojnost sodišča po neupoštevanju kakršnegakoli ustnega zaslišanja v postopku o sporih majhne vrednosti ni v skladu z zahtevami omenjene Evropske konvencije in Listine. Avtorja se v prispevku ukvarjata predvsem s tem vprašanjem, prav tako pa tudi orišeta vsebino posameznih splošnih načel in delovanje evropskega postopka v sporih majhnih vrednosti.

This report outlines the rules on the taking and using of evidence in Austrian civil procedure law. On the basis of principles such as the free disposition of parties, the attenuated inquisitorial principle or the principles of orality and directness, the judge and the parties form a "working group" when investigating the matter in dispute. The Austrian concept of an active judge, however, goes along with the judge's duty to do case-management and especially to induce a truthful fact-finding using judicial discretion. While only five means of proof (documents, witnesses, expert opinions, evidence by inspection and the examination of parties) are explicitly listed the Austrian civil procedure code, there is no numerus clausus regarding the means of evidence. Evidence may be freely assessed by the judge.