DENMARK Law and Practice Contributed by: Thomas Norvold, Søren Locher, Anne Mie Lund and Pawel Weigel, Fabritius Tengnagel & Heine
3.3 Jurisdictional Requirements for a Defendant
• the plaintiff’s personal or CVR number (if applica- ble); • a brief description of the case; • a comprehensive presentation of the factual and legal circumstances on which the claim is based; • identification of the documents and other evidence upon which the plaintiff intends to rely; and • the plaintiff’s proposal for the handling of the case, including suggestions for topics to be discussed at the preparatory meeting. If the writ of summons does not meet these require- ments and is thus unsuitable as the basis for process- ing the case, the case will be dismissed by a court decision. The court may also set a deadline for the plaintiff to remedy the deficiencies. Parties can change/modify their claim(s), arguments and evidence in subsequent submissions to the court. However, such changes, along with the basis for them, will be taken into consideration by the court in its deci- sion on costs. 3.5 Rules of Service In Denmark, the court is responsible for the service of the submitted writ of summons. Other subsequent submissions and/or documents are not subject to service. In civil cases, the service can be performed in the following ways: • electronically; • by letter; • by phone (followed by written confirmation); • by personal service; or • by publication in the Government Gazette (if the police cannot locate the correct individual). If a party has a residence or seat located outside of Denmark, they can still be sued in Denmark. In this case, the court is responsible for issuing the writ of summons. The service of the summons will be con- ducted in accordance with the relevant laws and agreements, including the Hague Service Convention.
In Danish law, the general rule is that a defendant must be sued in the district court corresponding to where the defendant resides (for natural persons) or where the main office is located (for legal persons). In addition, the Danish Administration of Justice Act contains a provision on supplementary jurisdiction, which allows a lawsuit to be initiated against a defend- ant in the following locations: • cases against persons conducting commercial business may be filed in the court at the location where the business is conducted, when the case concerns the business; • cases concerning rights to real estate can be filed in the court where the property is located; • contractual disputes may be filed in the court located at the place where the obligation underly- ing the case has been fulfilled or is to be fulfilled; and • cases in which claims for penalties, compensation or restitution arising from legal infringements are asserted may be brought before the court located at the place where the infringement occurred. If the court has no jurisdiction as outlined above, a case may also be filed in the court located at the place where the defendant has assets at the time the case is brought before the court, or where the assets related to the claim are located at the time the case is brought before the court. The Brussels I Regulation and the Lugano Convention are also applicable in Denmark. 3.4 Initial Complaint A civil lawsuit is initiated by submitting a writ of sum- mons to the court. It follows from the Danish Admin- istration of Justice Act that the writ of summons must contain the following: • the parties’ names and addresses; • specification of the court in which the case is filed; • the plaintiff’s claim;
• the case value; • the case type;
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