POLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Rafał Waszkiewicz and Bartosz Pyzder, Sołtysiński Kawecki & Szlęzak
6. Injunctive Relief 6.1 Circumstances of Injunctive Relief Injunctive relief may be claimed by any party or participant in the proceedings if they substanti- ate: • the claim to be secured; and • a legal interest in granting security. The legal interest in granting injunctive relief exists when the lack of security will prevent or seriously impede the enforcement of the deci- sion made in the case or will otherwise prevent or seriously impede the achievement of the pur- pose of the proceedings in the case. The same grounds apply to pecuniary and non-pecuniary claims. The choice of the type of injunction is made by the court taking into account the purpose of these proceedings. The interim injunction is allowed in most cases; however, it is not allowed to secure pecuniary claims against the state treasury. In disputes concerning intellectual property rights, the court is obliged to reject the applica- tion for an interim injunction if it is filed more than six months after the party became aware of the infringement of its exclusive right. 6.2 Arrangements for Obtaining Urgent Injunctive Relief The courts are bound by a seven-day period to consider the application for an interim injunc- tion. However, this is an instructive deadline and failing to meet it is not considered a breach of procedure. There are no “out-of-hours” judges or similar who would consider the motion for an interim injunction outside of the normal court hours in Poland.
6.3 Availability of Injunctive Relief on an Ex Parte Basis Injunctive proceedings are conducted ex parte, without notice to the respondent. If, however, the respondent obtains information regarding the motion for an interim injunction against them, they can file a pleading with their position, but the court is not obligated to wait for the respond- ent’s position. In disputes concerning intellectual property rights, the court should hear the obliged person unless it is necessary to immediately issue a ruling on the application. 6.4 Liability for Damages for the Applicant Polish law provides for the liability of the appli- cant for the enforcement of the interim injunc- tion. This also applies to injunctions that are not enforceable (eg, the prohibition of taking some action). The prerequisites for liability include: • proving the damage; • proving the connection between the execu- tion of the security and the damage; • one of the following events connected to the obtained security of claim: (a) the dismissal and rejection of the claim or application; (b) the discontinuance of proceedings; (c) the return of the claim or application; (d) the failure to lodge the letter initiating proceedings regarding the secured claims within the prescribed time limit (this ap- plies when the injunctive relief was issued before initiating main proceedings); or (e) the withdrawal of the claim or application. A claim against the applicant expires if it is not pursued within one year from the day of the claim arising.
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