HUNGARY Law and Practice Contributed by: István Varga and Viktor Előd Cserép, PROVARIS Varga & Partners
Contractual penalties may also be reduced by the court when deemed exaggerated under the circumstances. 9.3 Pre-judgment and Post-judgment Interest Statutory interest is to be paid after any sum (monetary debt) becomes due. If payment is delayed, the starting point of interest accrual is the point in time from which the debtor is in delay – ie, the date when payment becomes due. For sums owed in Hungarian forint, the statutory interest rate is the current interest rate (effective on the first day of the relevant half year) deter- mined by the Hungarian National Bank. The same rules apply in case of pre-judgment and post-judgment interest as well. 9.4 Enforcement Mechanisms of a Domestic Judgment First, the court of first instance issues an attesta- tion of enforceability of the judgment, which is the prerequisite of the in-fact enforcement of the judgment by a court bailiff. As an alternative to an attestation of enforceabil- ity, the court may also order the assignment of earnings when the claim is to be satisfied solely from the debtor’s wage. Monetary Claims Monetary claims may be enforced, inter alia, through: • the assignment of earnings; • execution against attachment/freezing of bank accounts; • execution against attachment of movables (seizure and sale through auction or to the buyer specified by the parties);
• the seizure of claims (the obligors of which shall pay the amount owed to the bailiff’s bank account); • the sale of securities to an investment ser- vices provider; • the auction of shares; and • execution against attachment of real property (seizure and sale through electronic auction or to the buyer specified by the parties). Specific Performance If the obligee debtor does not perform, the court determines the mode of enforcement and may: • order monetary payment; • allow the party seeking enforcement to per- form the relevant acts; • impose a monetary fine on the obligee debtor (up to HUF500,000, approximately EUR1,300); and • have the act enforced with police assistance. 9.5 Enforcement of a Judgment From a Foreign Country For judgments falling within the scope of the Brussels 1a Regulation (No 1215/2012), enforce- ment is governed by the same rules that apply to judgments rendered in Hungary. Foreign judgments not falling within the scope of the Brussels Regulation can be enforced based on a legislative act, international convention, or reciprocity. Parties seeking enforcement of such foreign judgments shall apply for a court order granting an exequatur (stating that the foreign judgment is enforceable in the same way as a judgment rendered in Hungary). Once the exequatur order becomes final and binding (in the second instance or when the time limit to appeal the order has expired with no appeal having been filed), the court can also
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