LIECHTENSTEIN Law and Practice Contributed by: Moritz Blasy, Nicolai Binkert, Simon Ott and Kathrin Binder, Schurti Partners Attorneys at Law Ltd
9.3 Pre-judgment and Post-judgment Interest Under Liechtenstein law, the question as to whether interest can be collected is a matter of substantive law rather than procedural law. Therefore, whether and to what extent inter- est can be claimed depends on the underly- ing legal relationship between the claimant and the defendant. If interest is due based on the respective underlying legal relationship, pre- and/or post-judgment interest can be claimed. According to substantive Liechtenstein law, the general statutory interest rate is 5% per annum. Between entrepreneurs, the general interest rate is 8% per annum above the base interest rate of the Swiss Central Bank. In addition, a debtor may be ordered to compensate for all damage resulting from late payment. 9.4 Enforcement Mechanisms of a Domestic Judgment After a judgment is final, the judgment creditor can seek enforcement in accordance with the Liechtenstein Enforcement Act ( Exekutionsord- nung ), which lays out different rules for enforcing monetary judgments as well as judgments for acts or omissions. In the case of a monetary judgment, different rules apply depending on the asset against which the judgment shall be enforced (ie, mov- able or immovable property). A monetary judg- ment can be enforced against immovable prop- erty by means of forced creation of a lien, forced administration or foreclosure. Monetary judg- ments can also be enforced against all kinds of moveable property and rights held by the judg- ment debtor (eg, IP rights, receivables).
Judgments for acts and omissions are enforced by means of eviction, substituted performance or fines and even imprisonment. 9.5 Enforcement of a Judgment From a Foreign Country There are no bilateral or multilateral agree- ments between Lichtenstein and other coun- tries regarding the mutual acknowledgement and enforcement of foreign judgments, with the exception of bilateral treaties with the Republic of Austria and Switzerland and the Hague Con- vention on Child Support. Therefore, judgments of foreign courts (other than Austrian and Swiss judgments and child support judgments) are not directly enforceable in Liechtenstein. 10. Appeal 10.1 Levels of Appeal or Review to a Litigation The Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court are the appellate courts in the Liechtenstein civil justice system. Furthermore, decisions of the Supreme Court (or of the Court of Appeal, if it decides as last instance) may be appealed by means of a constitutional complaint to the Liechtenstein Constitutional Court. Most orders of a procedural nature cannot be appealed to the Supreme Court and are decided by the Court of Appeal as last instance. The same holds true if the Court of Appeal confirms an order of the District Court. 10.2 Rules Concerning Appeals of Judgments As a rule, decisions of the District Court can be appealed to the Court of Appeal, and decisions of the Court of Appeal can be appealed to the Supreme Court.
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