SWEDEN Law and Practice Contributed by: Simon Arvmyren, Christopher Stridh and Mikaela Tysk, Delphi
If the respondent is domiciled outside Swe- den, the manner of service will be governed by applicable international treaties or regulations. Between EU member states, the EU Service Regulation will apply. If the defendant is domi- ciled in the Nordic countries (Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden), a Nordic agree- ment applies. In addition, Sweden has ratified the Hague Service Convention, which applies in relation to other parties thereto. If service is to be made in countries that are not party to any relevant international instrument, or where the applicable instrument so requests, the courts will turn to the County Administrative Board of Stockholm as it is the appointed Central Authority for international service of documents in Sweden and abroad. The Central Authority will then forward the document for service abroad. 3.6 Failure to Respond When the defendant is served the application for summons, the defendant is also ordered to sub - mit its answer or statement of defence within a certain deadline. If the defendant fails to comply, the court may deliver a default summary judg- ment in accordance with the relief sought by the plaintiff. The court will, in such case, make a prima facie, assessment of the plaintiff’s claim, to reasonably ensure that it is justified. Similarly, the court may issue a default judgment against the defendant (or the plaintiff) if they fail to a appear at a hearing and have been notified that the failure to appear may result in a default judg- ment. If a default judgment has been ruled, the defend- ant may, however, apply for the case to be reo- pened. The case can be reopened if the defend- ant applies to the court within a month from the day the default judgment was announced. If no application is made, or if it is late, the default
judgment becomes legally binding with res judi- cata effect. 3.7 Representative or Collective Actions Various forms of representative group litigation are available in, for instance, the Labour Court, where trade unions and employer’s organisa- tions may bring forward cases. In addition to this, the Group Proceedings Act (GPA) allows for different forms of group actions in general courts. The GPA allows three forms of group actions. • Private group actions – any person (physical or legal) may initiate a private group action if the person has standing as a party to the pro- ceedings with respect to one of the causes of action. • Organisation group actions – these are avail- able in consumer and environmental law; group actions may be initiated by non-profit organisations which fulfil certain criteria. • Public group actions – these may be initi- ated by the public authorities appointed by the government, currently the Consumer Ombudsman and the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. The proceedings are opt-in. There is no specific “certification” required; whether a case fulfils the criteria of a group action is handled by the court as any other motion to dismiss an action without trying it on the merits. A group action is available if: • the action is based on circumstances or mat- ters of law which are common or similar with respect to the claims of the members of the group; • group proceedings do not appear inappropri- ate;
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