MOLDOVA Law and Practice Contributed by: Vladislav Roșca, Ina Jimbei and Mădălina Luca, EFRIM, ROŞCA & Associates
6.5 Respondent’s Worldwide Assets and Injunctive Relief The Moldovan courts have jurisdiction only over assets located in Moldova. Therefore, interim protec- tive measures cannot be granted by Moldovan courts against worldwide assets. 6.6 Third Parties and Injunctive Relief Interim protective measures cannot be granted against third parties. However, when the defendant has con- veyed his or her assets to third parties, the interim protective measure can be ordered over such assets as well. For instance, if the goods possessed by the defendant are not enough, interim protective meas- ures shall be ordered over the defendant’s assets held by third parties. 6.7 Consequences of a Respondent’s Non- Compliance A ruling for an interim protective measure is enforced immediately by the bailiff, without notifying the defend- ant. The bailiff applies the seizure over the assets indi- cated in the ruling and makes the necessary entries in the relevant public registers. Therefore, there is little chance of the defendant disobeying such a ruling. However, if the defendant nevertheless sells or dis- poses of an asset under seizure, such an act is null and void. Moreover, the defendant may be held liable under contravention or criminal law. 7. Trials and Hearings 7.1 Trial Proceedings Civil proceedings involve both written and oral ele- ments: • the initiation stage is written; • the preparatory stage combines written exchanges and, if necessary, a hearing for clarifying proce- dural issues; • the debate stage is oral, including the examination of evidences, oral arguments, etc, while the plead- ings are held both orally and in writing; and • the final reply is oral, and is a short statement against the other party’s pleadings.
The case is examined in a written procedure only in specific cases expressly provided by law. However, even in such cases, the court may order an oral hear- ing if it deems it necessary. 7.2 Case Management Hearings In more complex cases, the court may summon the parties to a hearing for case management purposes, particularly to address issues such as joining addi- tional parties or determining the scope of evidence. Interim motions or applications are examined dif- ferently. Urgent matters, such as the application of interim protective measures, are handled without summoning the parties to a hearing. The objection of the action being time barred is examined in the court hearing, but the legally summoned participants’ failure to appear does not prevent the examination of the application. In contrast, applications for the termina- tion of the proceeding or for striking a claim from the docket are examined in a hearing with the participa- tion of the parties. 7.3 Jury Trials in Civil Cases Jury trials are not available in civil cases in Moldova. 7.4 Rules That Govern Admission of Evidence The evidence must be submitted within the time limits set by the court in the preparatory stage. Evidence may only be considered if it is relevant to the issues in dispute, legally obtained and not inadmissible by law. For instance, evidence obtained in violation of the law – such as by misleading a party to the proceed- ings, signing a document by an unauthorised person, or other illegal actions – is considered inadmissible. The court decides on the admissibility of evidence, and parties may object to evidence that is late, irrel- evant or unlawful. 7.5 Expert Testimony Expert testimony is permitted at trial. The parties can request the appointment of an expert to clarify points requiring special knowledge. The expert must be reg- istered in the State Register of Judicial Experts. The expert prepares a written report, which is sub- mitted to the court at least five days before the hear-
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