FINLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Marja Norrena, Maija Ahtiainen and Valmari Keskimäki, Lieke Attorneys Ltd
3.4 Initial Complaint In Finland, a civil lawsuit is initiated by filing a writ- ten application for a summons to the District Court of competent jurisdiction. The main requirements for the content of the application for a summons are set out in the Code of Judicial Procedure. The application for a summons must include: • the claimant’s specified claim; • the circumstances on which the claim is based; • as far as possible, the evidence that the claimant intends to present in support of their claim, and a description of what each piece of evidence is intended to prove; • the claim for compensation for legal costs; and • the basis for the court’s jurisdiction, if this cannot be inferred from the application for a summons or the documents attached to it. Apart from the statutory minimum requirements for an application for a summons, the claimant should bear in mind that the application for a summons provides the judge or judges with their first impression of the case. As a general rule, an action cannot be amended dur- ing the proceedings. However, before the main hear- ing of the case, the claimant is entitled to: • claim a performance other than that intended in the action, provided that the amended claim is based on a change in circumstances that has occurred during the proceedings, or on a circumstance of which the claimant has only become aware during the proceedings; • claim confirmation of a legal relationship that is disputed in the proceedings when clarity of this relationship is a prerequisite for deciding the other parts of the matter; and • claim interest or present another subsidiary claim or even a new claim, if this is based on essentially the same grounds. Furthermore, the presentation of new circumstances in support of the action is permitted unless these cir- cumstances alter the nature of the case. A claim is not considered to have been amended merely because
the original demand is supported by a new ground as long as the relief sought remains the same. 3.5 Rules of Service In Finland, it is primarily the court’s responsibility to serve the summons to the defendant. With the party’s consent, the court may entrust this responsibility to them if it considers there to be a reason to do so. In such a case, the court must specify the deadline for serving the document and for submitting proof of ser- vice. Failing to submit proof of service by the specified deadline and in the prescribed manner may result in the case being dismissed without further considera- tion. When the court is responsible for service, it is primarily carried out by sending the documents to the party by registered post with an acknowledgment of receipt. Alternatively, service may be carried out by ordinary mail if it can be assumed that the addressee will receive the documents and returns the acknowledge- ment of receipt to the court, or with the addressee’s consent, by electronic means. If service has not been successfully executed and it is clearly unlikely to be achieved using the above methods, or if there is another compelling reason, the documents must be served in person by a process server. If the recipient of service resides abroad, the court must arrange service in accordance with specific legal provisions concerning the foreign state in question, or agreements made with that state, if the recipient’s address is known and the responsibility of service has not been assigned to a party. Depending on the coun- try, the relevant provisions can be derived from EU regulations, the 1965 Hague Service Convention, or the Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Service of Documents and Production of Evidence between Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. If the defendant’s whereabouts are unknown, the court may serve them by way of a public notice. 3.6 Failure to Respond If the defendant fails to respond to the application for a summons in a civil case where settlement is permit- ted, the court will issue a default judgment in favour
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