POLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Rafał Waszkiewicz and Bartosz Pyzder, Sołtysiński Kawecki & Szlęzak
4. Pre-Trial Proceedings 4.1 Interim Applications/Motions
Moreover, the claimant may request that certain evi- dence is preserved when there is a fear that the tak- ing of evidence later will become impracticable or too difficult, or when, for other reasons, there is a need to establish an existing state of affairs. On the other hand, the defendant may raise some motions or objections that would prevent a hearing, eg, the lack of jurisdiction, the existence of a valid arbitration agreement covering the case, or a motion to examine the value of the dispute (which is par- ticularly important when the court fee depends on the amount in dispute). As a rule, such motions and objections must be raised in the statement of defence before the discussion on the merits of the case. 4.4 Requirements for Interested Parties to Join a Lawsuit A person who is not a claimant or a defendant may join a case. This is possible if such person has a legal interest in the case being settled in favour of one of the parties. The joinder (side intervention) may be filed at any stage of the proceedings before the court of first or second instance and should indicate the party that the intervener wants to join and the legal interest for participating in the case. The court fee for the joinder is one-fifth of the court fee for the statement of claim. A side intervention can also be triggered by a party that, in the event of an unfavourable outcome for it, would have a claim against a third party, or against which party a third party could bring a claim. In such case, the party may request that the court notifies such third party about the proceedings. The third party can join the case but is not obliged to do so. Each party can oppose the intervener that wishes to join. In the case of the opposition, the intervener must substantiate its legal interest. If the intervener fails to do so, the court should accept the opposition’s motion and prohibit the intervener from participating in the case. The intervener is entitled to take any procedural actions as may be admissible at a given stage of the case; however, in some cases, such actions may not run counter to the actions and statements of the party that the intervener has joined.
Polish law allows for several types of interim appli- cation, including interim injunctions and evidence preservation. Following the grant of an injunction, the court may decide on measures such as encumbering real property, seizing movable property or establish- ing compulsory administration of businesses. If the secured claim is non-pecuniary, the court may secure it in any appropriate manner, including suspending the effects of some legal action or prohibiting certain actions. 4.2 Early Judgment Applications Polish law does not provide for a form of “early judg- ment”; however, there are three types of judgment that may be issued before the court hears all the merits of the case: • The court may give a partial judgment when only part of the claim or some of the claims in the appli- cation are capable of being settled. • The court, finding the claim to be justified in prin- ciple, may give a preliminary judgment only on the merits (principle) of the case and continue the pro- ceedings to determine the amount to be awarded. • The court may also dismiss the claim as being manifestly unfounded in closed session without serving the statement of claim on the defendant or hearing the submissions made with the claim. The court may also issue an order for payment in an order for payment procedure or a procedure by writ of payment (see 9.1 Awards Available to the Successful Litigant ). 4.3 Dispositive Motions Polish law provides a creditor with the possibility to file an application to secure a claim. Such security is granted in the form of a court decision that prevents the debtor from disposing of property if such disposal could have adverse effects on the creditor and the claims asserted by the creditor, or that regulates the relationship between the parties in another appropri- ate way.
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