Government session: better consumer protection, faster consumer bankruptcies and stronger protection against SLAPPs

At the 157th session of the Government, the Minister of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation Damir Habijan presented three legislative proposals - of the  Act on Amendments to the Civil Obligations Act, the Act on Amendments to the Consumer Bankruptcy Act and of the Act on the Protection of Persons Who Engage in Public Participation

Longer consumer protection periods

Speaking about the Draft Proposal of the Act on Amendments to the Civil Obligations Act, Minister Habijan explained that two directives were being transposed - the Product Liability Directive and the Directive on Common Rules Promoting the Repair of Goods.

The first Directive regulates the liability of economic operators for damage caused by defective products, with the deadline for its transposition until 9 December this year.

The Directive also extends the material scope of liability for defective products, by including software such as AI systems or applications.

It also lays down criteria for determining whether a product is defective.

‘What is interesting is the limitation periods. In addition to the existing ones - a subjective period of 3 years and an objective period of 10 years from the placing on the market of the product - a new limitation period of 25 years is now introduced, if the injured party could not initiate proceedings within 10 years due to the latency of a personal injury’, said Minister Habijan.

The second Directive provides for an extension of the liability period for a material defect, and the deadline for its transposition is until 31 July this year.

In addition, it is stipulated that the bank guarantee and the power of attorney can now also be issued in electronic form.
 
Transfer of consumer bankruptcy cases to commercial courts for better efficiency

Minister Habijan explained that the Draft Proposal of the Act on Amendments to the Consumer Bankruptcy Act transfers the resolution of consumer bankruptcy cases to commercial courts, instead of the existing jurisdiction of municipal courts. 

‘If we look at the period from 2020 to 2025, we have a significantly higher influx of cases to municipal courts and a somewhat reduced influx to commercial courts. The adoption of this Act will have the effect of reducing the number of new cases in municipal courts, which will open up space for municipal courts to deal with other cases within their jurisdiction’, clarified Minister Habijan.

It will also increase the resolution rate in consumer bankruptcy proceedings, increase the specialisation of case handlers in those proceedings and achieve a more balanced case distribution in the courts.
  
Wider protection against SLAPPs: new law introduces procedural safeguards

Finally, the Minister also touched on the Draft Proposal of the Act on the Protection of Persons Who Engage in Public Participation, explaining that it was a transposition into the national system of the Directive on protecting persons who engage in public participation from manifestly unfounded claims or abusive court proceedings.

The Draft Proposal envisages a much broader scope of application than the Directive itself, so that it will apply to both national and cross-border civil and commercial cases.

‘What is essential, this Draft Proposal establishes procedural safeguards that protect the rights of natural and legal persons who engage in public participation against whom abusive court proceedings have been initiated. The procedural guarantees in question include securing the estimated costs of the proceedings, early dismissal of an unfounded claim, reimbursement of procedural costs, fines and other penalties’, Minister Habijan concluded.

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