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The article discusses the procedural aspects of decision-making by the plenary session of the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic. It highlights the division of cases between the plenary session and smaller panels, emphasizing the importance of the plenary session in deciding the most serious cases, such as the annulment of laws and constitutional complaints. The article also addresses the quorum requirements and the challenges in interpreting legal provisions related to decision-making. It critiques the current practice of the Constitutional Court, suggesting that the existing procedures may not cover all potential scenarios and proposing possible improvements. The author argues for a consistent approach to decision-making, whether the outcome is to annul or uphold a law, and stresses the need for a qualified majority in significant cases. The discussion includes examples of past decisions and differing opinions among judges, illustrating the complexities and potential inconsistencies in the Court's practice. The article concludes by suggesting that legislative changes might be necessary to ensure clearer and more effective decision-making processes.
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The document discusses the involvement of political parties in proceedings before the Supreme Court of the Czech Republic. It outlines the types of cases where political parties may appear, including appeals against registration refusals, dissolution or suspension of activities, and review of election decisions. The document highlights the legal norms applicable to these proceedings, emphasizing the mixed nature of the relevant laws, which contain both substantive and procedural elements. It also addresses the procedural specifics of these cases, such as the non-contentious nature of certain proceedings and the investigative principle applied. The document critiques the current legal framework, suggesting that it may not adequately reflect the unique nature of these proceedings and calling for potential reforms to better accommodate the procedural rights of political parties.
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The article discusses the complexities and legal ambiguities surrounding auctions under Czech law, particularly focusing on the law No. 427/1990 Sb. It highlights the inconsistent interpretations and applications of the law by courts, especially regarding the acquisition of ownership of auctioned goods and the determination of their prices. The article emphasizes the need for a clear and unified legal framework to address these issues, citing various court rulings and legal theories. It also explores the contractual nature of auctions and the potential for invalidating auctions based on certain legal defects. The discussion includes the responsibilities of the auctioneer and the bidder, the timing of ownership transfer, and the legal consequences of not paying for auctioned goods. The article concludes by suggesting that despite existing judicial interpretations, further clarification and legal reforms are necessary to ensure fair and consistent auction practices.
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The gloss has been dedicated to the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal dated 20 June 2017 fi le no. P/124/15 (Journal of Laws, item 1214). The basis for the judgment was the factual circumstances which included the first prosecution (Art. 271 § 1 of the act dated 6 June 1997 – penal code) and road transport law (art. 92a para. 1 of the road transport law). The doubts of the inquiring court arose from admissibility of use, in relation to the same natural person for the same deed being the issuance of the document which certifies an untruth, of the criminal liability for the penal code crime and administrative responsibility (sanction) in the form of the punishment pursuant to the road transport law. The similarity of penal code norms and road transport law is not a logical principle, it requires a basis in the law.
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The aim of this contribution is to find answers to questions related to the admissibility of limiting the transferability of bonds with the consent of the issuer, which was triggered by the Supreme Court’s judgment issued on 27. 4. 2023, sp. zn. 27 ICdo 30/2022. Based on the fact, that a bond as a debt security incorporates a claim, the Supreme Court applied the legal regulation of the prohibition of cesses to the question of the admissibility of limiting the transferability of bonds (§ 1881 of the Civil Code). With regard to the consequences of violating this restriction, the ineffectiveness of the transfer was subsequently argued. For the reasons discussed in more detail in this contribution, the first part of the decision, based on the thesis of equating a claim from a bond to a claim not embodied in a security (assignment of a claim), is particularly problematic. In addition to the analysis of questionable passages of the judgment, the contribution will also focus on outlining alternative considerations regarding the adjudicated question. General (rather theoretically tuned) consideration of the permissibility of limiting the right of disposition to bonds will be supplemented by a more practical interpretation of the legally approved modalities of such a limitation. The third discussion area will be devoted to issues related to the legal consequences of violating transferability restrictions.
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The study of constitutions in the context of the global financial crisis can be structured through two distinct questions: how can constitutions help in the crisis and what happens to constitutions during such a crisis? Beyond its economic impact, the 2008 financial crisis has produced new constitutional stories. One of the most important issues that we should discover is “How does the global financial crisis affect constitutions and their enforcement?” Nonetheless, one could begin by asking the exact opposite that is “Can constitutions affect the course and the consequences of the financial crisis?” The interaction between the financial crisis and constitutions differs in each legal order as it is correlated to the exact form the crisis took in each country, varying in terms of intensity and symptoms, and also because constitutions and political systems have their own safety valves in response to such challenges. Looking back to the 1930s, the New Deal constitutional moment and the collapse of the Weimar Constitution are suggestive of the interaction between major financial crises and constitutions, indicating that completely adverse reactions may occur. What happens depends on a combination of constitutional design and multiple external factors. This attempt to document how constitutions responded to the 2008 global financial crisis is structured by addressing a series of questions that aim to reveal what dominated the country- specific dialogues.
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The article comments on the discrepancies in judgments of Polish courts regarding the interpretations used, introduces the facts, and examines which legal provisions are used when assessing the seller’s liability for specific inauthentic works. The aim of the article is also to verify whether the parties in a transaction observe proper behaviour and what methods courts consider reliable when assessing the authenticity of works in evidentiary proceedings.
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The article is a discussion and analysis of more than a dozen investigations and criminal proceedings conducted in the years 1945–1975 in Germany (East Germany and West Germany) and in the People’s Republic of Poland concerning the crimes committed by German police and civil administration officers, gendarmes, border policemen and Poles in German service from the occupation area of Miechów county. The author discusses how the investigations were carried out: the collection and evaluation of the credibility and the cognitive value of the evidence, especially of survivor testimonies, defense strategies of the accused, the harshness of sentences handed down, and the contacts between the Central Office of the State Justice Administrations for the Investigation of National Socialist Crimes (Zentrale Stelle der Landesjustizverwaltungen) in Ludwigsburg and the German prosecutors and the Main Commission for the Investigation of Nazi Crimes in Poland and the District Commission in Cracow. The source base consists of documents from the Institute of National Remembrance branches in Cracow and Kielce, the Yad Vashem Archives, as well as several published verdicts.
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Icek Lerner of Komarówka Podlaska wanted to bring about the conviction of the perpetrators of the murder of six members of his immediate family in the village of Przegaliny near Komarówka, and his partner Estera Rybak (and formerly her daughter) in Warsaw. He identified the murderers and demonstrated the course of events. His efforts proved fruitless. Years later, the case was taken up by his son, Rony Lerner, also to no avail. The article, a case study of survivor Icek Lerner’s attempt to seek justice also addresses, using his later descriptions of his experiences during the Holocaust as an example, the question of the reliability of testimonies given many years after the fact.
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The article explores the role of Polish Jewish organizations in investigations and trials of Holocaust perpetrators. It contributes a study of Jewish survivors’ agency in pursuing justice, their relationships with non-Jewish institutions and authorities, and the role of the international networks in these processes. At the center of the article are the Jewish national institutions operating in Poland in the 1940s, which represented the survivors and served as intermediaries between them and the authorities. In the conditions of anti-Jewish hatred, mass displacement, and the strengthening of communism in Poland, Jews treated collecting evidence and pursuing justice as a national mission, and perceived Jewish institutions, in this case the Central Committee of Polish Jews, as representatives of the victims and the Jewish people. The exchange of information between survivors, domestic and foreign Jewish communities, and lobby with national and international authorities, have provided a chance to supply lacking documentation and witness accounts, potentially increase the rate of punishment for perpetrators in Holocaust-related trials, and allow survivors to fulfill their moral obligation.
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Commentary on case law discusses a recent decision by the Czech Constitutional Court regarding noise protection regulations. A group of 23 senators challenged amendments to government regulation No. 433/2022, which increased noise limits from road and rail transport in protected outdoor areas. The senators argued that the amendments were chaotic, unbalanced, and unpredictable, potentially leading to significant increases in permissible noise levels. The Constitutional Court partially rejected and partially dismissed the proposal, stating that the amendments did not violate the law. The Court emphasized that setting noise limits is within the government's competence and that reducing protection levels is not inherently unconstitutional. The decision also referenced previous rulings and international standards, noting that neither the World Health Organization nor the European Union mandates specific noise limits. The Court concluded that balancing public health protection with societal needs is essential, and the increased noise limits do not breach constitutional mandates.
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One of the special conditions that in retrospect proved to be decisive for the formation of Western industrial society is the emergence of the unique occidental urban culture. The guilds as "communes pré-légales" formed the nucleus for this. Without them, the social type of the free and equal citizen, who is loyal to his community, is inconceivable. As "groupements pré-urbains", they brought the forms and spirit of fraternity by oath to the emerging cities. As "initiatrices de l'autonomie urbaine" they secured political and commercial self-government in the city and territory vis-à-vis the authorities. In the view of Max Weber, the uniqueness of the occidental city is correspondingly linked to the associational character that occurred there, and also Otto Hintze pointed out that the European development into a free community was a singular phenomenon that had not occurred in this form anywhere else. Although there were guilds and similar associations of persons in the East, for example in China, the decisive difference to the European groups lay in the fact that the former remained connected to the idea of family, clan and tribal. While the dynastic rule regularly established a vertically structured organization, the "artificial kinship" resulted in a horizontal formation, which was established as a free "union" between the participants by contract and oath was characterized by certain principles. The constitutive feature was the oath that was linked to the treaty and indissolubly bound the "confederates" („Eidgenossen“) to each other. In examining the organizing principles of these "unifications", four areas must be emphasized: 1. The unconditional obligation to assist each other ("against all and everyone"). 2. The professional, social and (or) pastoral support of its members. 3. The primacy of one's own legal system. 4. The order of the Community by law and procedure. The Swiss "Eid-Genossenschaft" of 1291, which, apart from the free imperial cities of the Holy Roman Empire, was the only horizontal association to assert itself at the state level, and still proudly bears this designation today, is a prominent example of the constitutive and at the same time hardened by the oath an association of this form.
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Faptul că litigiul are ca obiect cererea de constatare a existenței dreptului de proprietate asupra disponibilităților bănești existente într-un depozit bancar, deschis pe numele debitoarei, care a parcurs procedura insolvenței, precum și realizarea dreptului sub forma remiterii sumei către reclamant nu atrage automat competența judecătorului sindic, ale cărui atribuții sunt reglementate de art. 45 din Legea nr. 85/2014. Astfel, având în vedere că reclamantul urmărește constatarea dreptului de proprietate asupra disponibilităților bănești existente în contul debitoarei, față de care s-a închis procedura insolvenței, și obligarea băncii la plata acestora către reclamant, în cauză sunt aplicabile normele de procedură prevăzute la art. 35 C. proc. civ. și cele de drept substanțial de la art. 557 și art. 2192 C. civ. Prin urmare, competența materială și teritorială de soluționare a cauzei în primă instanță nu se poate stabili potrivit normelor prevăzute art. 120 C. proc. civ. și dispozițiilor speciale privind procedura insolvenței, ci în virtutea dispozițiilor dreptului comun.
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Raportul de cauzalitate este nu doar o condiție a răspunderii, ci și criteriul după care se stabilește întinderea obligației de despăgubire. Decelarea acestei condiții nu este întotdeauna facilă, legătura de cauzalitate se configurează adesea într-un complex de împrejurări, cu interacțiuni diferite în producerea rezultatului, iar acestea trebuie examinate fiecare în parte spre a putea determina care dintre ele, singular ori împreună, au condus, în mod indivizibil, la producerea pagubei. Cauza prejudiciului nu poate fi identificată întotdeauna ca fiind singulară ori izolată, ci trebuie determinată prin evaluarea modului în care ea este favorizată de alte elemente, chiar secundare, care concură, înlesnesc sau favorizează, în cele din urmă, paguba. Toate împrejurările evocate pot provoca un context care, în sine, se poate identifica într-o etiologie unică și caracterizează, într-un caz particular, legătura de cauzalitate care concură la demonstrarea răspunderii civile. Or, în măsura în care instanța de apel a avut în vedere examinarea legăturii de cauzalitate numai prin evaluarea unui singur șir de elemente, evaluate ca indispensabile, dar a ignorat altele, la rândul lor esențiale, integrate aceluiași context, analiza legăturii de cauzalitate, condiție a răspunderii civile, este insuficientă, ceea ce nu corespunde unei aplicări corecte a legii.
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I) Însăși Directiva nr.17/2014 are ca premisă aplicarea principiului nominalismului (împrumutatul suportă riscul valutar), dar obligă statele membre să adopte o reglementare specială, derogatorie, de natură să asigure protecția consumatorilor, cu aplicabilitate numai pentru viitor, adică pentru contractele care vor fi încheiate sub imperiul unei asemenea reglementări. Prin urmare, în materia creditelor în valută, problema riscului valutar la care este expus consumatorul nu este susceptibilă de a fi soluționată pe calea unor acțiuni întemeiate pe Legea nr.193/2000, având în vedere faptul că riscul valutar este suportat de consumator nu în temeiul unei pretinse clauze abuzive din contractul de credit, ci este consecința aplicării nominalismului consacrat de lege. Obligația contractuală de a rambursa creditul în moneda în care a fost contractat creditul reprezintă transpunerea în practică a principiului nominalismului monetar care nu poate fi interpretat în favoarea consumatorului. II) Perceperea de către bancă a unei sume de bani consistente lunar (comisionul de adminstrare), duce la un dezechilibru semnificativ între drepturile și obligațiile părților, exprimat prin plata de către un consumator a unui cost al creditului care în fapt este o dobândă mascată și reprezentând evident o clauză abuzivă.
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Înalta Curte de Casație și Justiție, Completul pentru dezlegarea unor chestiuni de drept, decizia nr. 61/2022, M. Of. nr. 1.172 din 7 decembrie 2022
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i) Dispozițiile art. 4 alin. (1) lit. c) din Legea nr. 77/2016 nu instituie decât condiția ca, creditul să fi fost contractat de consumator cu scopul de a achiziționa, construi, extinde, moderniza, amenaja, reabilita un imobil cu destinație de locuință sau, indiferent de scopul pentru care a fost contractat, este garantat cu cel puțin un imobil având destinația de locuință”, nu și condiția ca imobilul să fie folosit pe post de locuință chiar de către consumator. ii) Legea specială nu prevede modalitatea concretă în care se realizează echilibrarea contractului. Cu toate acestea, având în vedere art. 4 alin. (1) lit e) și alin. (1 ind.1) din aceeași lege care privesc impreviziunea, se constată că echilibrarea reprezintă, în fapt, adaptarea contractului în ipoteza impreviziunii. iii) Măsurile de adaptare a contractului, stabilite de părți, ca urmare a unui proces de negociere, ori de instanța sesizată în temeiul Legii nr. 77/2016, nu pot fi aplicate retroactiv, astfel cum rezultă cu claritate din deciziile Curții Constituționale, prestațiile executate rămânând câștigate contractului. De aceea, sintagma "pentru viitor" se referă la un moment ulterior celui la care se produce riscul supraadăugat, respectiv data la care debitorul invocă impreviziunea în mod efectiv (data transmiterii notificării potrivit art. 5 din Legea nr. 77/2016).
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C.J.U.E., Camera a cincea, hotărârea din 22 februarie 2024, cauza C-661/22
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