Businesses in Croatia can now file and receive court documents online – and access court proceedings remotely. But only after registering for e-access.

Jurisdiction

Croatia

What's new?

The judicial system is finally adapting to the trends of digitisation by enabling direct electronic communication with all legal entities residing in Croatia.

Amendments to the Civil Procedure Act and associated Rulebook on electronic communication mean that from 1 September 2020, legal entities can electronically communicate with all Commercial, Municipal and County Courts, as well as the High Commercial Court of the Republic of Croatia.

What does this mean for businesses operating in Croatia?

This means that legal entities – as external users of the judicial information system – will be able to file submissions, receive court documents, gain remote access to their court proceedings and so on. Until now, this was only accessible to state authorities, attorneys, public notaries and similar bodies.

What action should be taken?

To gain access to Croatia's judicial e-communication system, each legal entity must do the following:

  • register with the Ministry of Justice
  • obtain electronic credentials of level 3 or higher
  • obtain a signature certificate in Croatia that allows documents to be signed with an authorised electronic signature.

Alongside e-communication, amendments to the Court Registry Act and associated Rulebook on the manner of registration with the Court Registry have been introduced.

All legal entities listed in the Court registry need to report their e-mail address by following these steps:

  • complete a legally prescribed form
  • have it signed by company legal representatives
  • submit the form to the competent Court Registry.

Legal entities that do not activate their access to e-communication will not be able to file submissions nor receive notifications from the Courts.

This could result in negative consequences and pose high liability risks in a situation where court information does not reach the entity in a timely manner.

Originally published by TMF, September 2020

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.