SWEDEN Law and Practice Contributed by: Simon Arvmyren, Christopher Stridh and Mikaela Tysk, Delphi
If commercially sensitive information is to be included in a written submission or during a hearing, it is advis- able to include an explicit request for confidentiality, including the reasons therefor and to provide the court with a redacted copy of the relevant document(s). The same applies if one wishes that part of the proceed- ings shall be pursued behind closed doors. It is not possible for the parties to agree that certain documents shall be kept confidential or under seal, since the issue is governed by public interest. 1.4 Legal Representation in Court In Swedish court proceedings, a party may always represent itself. Hence, an authorised representative of a company or other legal entity may represent that entity, and natural persons may represent themselves. A party may also appoint counsel to represent them in court. The formal requirements for a person to be allowed to act as counsel are low; it is not necessary to have legal training and it is not necessary to be a member of the Swedish Bar Association or otherwise be licensed. The formal requirements are limited to that counsel must: • have a sufficient knowledge of Swedish; • be domiciled in Sweden, another member state within the EU, European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland; and • have full legal capacity (be at least 18, not be in bankruptcy nor have a guardian appointed). The court may allow counsel from other countries as well. In practice, in all commercial cases of any signifi- cance, the parties will be represented by a Swedish Advokat (member of the Swedish Bar Association) and, more rarely, by other counsel with legal train- ing (for instance in-house counsel). The concept of “rights of an audience”, which usually is applicable in common law countries, is not used in the same way in Sweden. Further rules regarding legal representatives can be found in Chapter 12 of the Procedural Code and rules
concerning attorneys exclusively are to be found in Chapter 8 of the Procedural Code.
2. Litigation Funding 2.1 Third-Party Litigation Funding
In most cases, litigation costs are carried by the par- ties to the dispute. In addition to this, legal expense insurance is included in most standard insurance policies for SMEs, and commonly available as stand- alone insurance, but normally only covers a fairly lim- ited amount. Third-party litigation funding, which is a growing market in Sweden, is unregulated and permitted in Sweden. Several third-party funders, both domestic and international, are active in Sweden and there are several examples of funded cases, including contem- plated group actions. Although the number of funded cases is increasing, the prevalence of third-party fund- ed cases remains limited. 2.2 Third-Party Funding: Lawsuits All types of lawsuits are available for third-party fund- ing, including, for example, tax recovery. 2.3 Third-Party Funding for Plaintiff and Defendant Third-party funding is available for both the plaintiff and defendant. 2.4 Minimum and Maximum Amounts of Third-Party Funding There is no maximum or minimum amount for third- party funding. 2.5 Types of Costs Considered Under Third- Party Funding A third-party funder will normally fund the legal costs of the funded party (fees for counsel, experts and oth- er costs, for example the funded party’s related oper- ating costs); funding of potential adverse costs may be included in the funding arrangement as well. As the market is still developing, the influence from other more mature markets, such as the UK, is significant, which means that the terms of funding agreements
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