DENMARK Law and Practice Contributed by: Thomas Norvold, Søren Locher, Anne Mie Lund and Pawel Weigel, Fabritius Tengnagel & Heine
Specialised Courts In addition to the general courts, there are spe- cialised courts with limited jurisdiction. The Maritime and Commercial High Court is a specialised court with exclusive jurisdiction to handle cases concerning EU trade marks and EU designs. Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, a case requiring expertise in international busi- ness matters or maritime, aviation, rail transport or competition law may be initiated before the Maritime and Commercial High Court. Its judg- ments can be appealed to the high court or the Supreme Court. A judgment can be appealed to the Supreme Court if the Supreme Court finds it is of a principled nature and has general sig- nificance for the application and development of the law or significant societal implications, or if there are other special reasons for the case to be heard by the Supreme Court as the second instance. There are also other specialised courts with lim- ited jurisdiction, including the Registration Court ( Tinglysningsretten ), the Labour Court ( Arbejd- sretten ), the Housing Court ( Boligretten ) and the Special Court of Indictment and Revision ( Den Særlige Klageret ). 1.3 Court Filings and Proceedings It follows from the Danish Constitutional Act that, in the administration of justice, all proceedings shall be public and oral, to the widest possible extent. Court cases are normally conducted orally in court during a final hearing, including presentation of the relevant documents, wit- ness hearings and presentation of the parties’ arguments. The preparation of cases, however, largely takes place in writing. According to the Danish Administration of Jus- tice Act, court hearings are open to the public.
Therefore, the public generally has the right to attend a court hearing and court proceedings can be publicly reported, including in the media. In criminal cases, the court may limit public access to the proceedings. Witnesses – but not the parties to the case – are not allowed to attend the court hearing until they have given their own testimony in court. According to the Danish Administration of Jus- tice Act, anyone can obtain copies of judgments and rulings, as well as decisions regarding legal costs in civil cases. It is possible to request cop- ies of the parties’ pleadings two working days before the start of the final court hearing. Anyone who has an individual, substantial interest in a specific legal issue can demand access to docu- ments related to a civil case. However, access to documents can be restrict- ed, including if the documents contain informa- tion such as trade secrets, and if it is deemed that public access should yield to significant considerations for the party concerned in the case, and these considerations cannot be safe- guarded through anonymisation. 1.4 Legal Representation in Court Attorneys-at-law are generally the only ones allowed to appear as legal representatives on behalf of a client in court. The title of attorney-at- law ( Advokat ) is protected in Denmark, so such individuals must be appointed by the Ministry of Justice in order to act as attorneys-at-law. All attorneys-at-law can represent a client in the district court. Representation in the high courts and the Supreme Court requires an obtained right of audience before these courts. An attorney-at law from another EU country, known as an “EU
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