EUPillar SA B. v SARL A. - 10/14124/A - Civ. (sais.) Bruxelles, 21 March 2011

Summary

On 30 June 2010, the plaintiff was ordered by the Commercial Court of Paris to pay 1,459,417.56 EUR to the defendant, plus interest from 30 December 2008 and 10,000 EUR in procedural costs. The plaintiff lodged an appeal against this decision, which is still pending. On that basis the defendant attached the bank accounts of the plaintiff in the hands of SA Fortis Banque, without asking for permission beforehand. On 30 August 2010, the defendant made an application to this Court to enforce the judgment of the Commercial Court of Paris, in accordance with Art. 38(1) Brussels I Regulation. The enforcement order was given on 14 December. On 20 January 2011, the appellant initiated third-party proceedings against this order. On 24 January 2011, the defendant executed another preventive attachment in the hands of Fortis Banque on the basis of Art. 47(2) Brussels I Regulation. In the case at hand, the plaintiff opposes only the first attachment of 14 December 2010 and did not amend its application to include the second attachment of 24 January 2011. The first attachment is superseded by the second one. Moreover, the second attachment does not need to fulfill the requirements of Belgian law, such as prior approval by the enforcement judge, since it is governed directly by European law. Art. 47(2) Brussels I Regulation provides that “The declaration of enforceability shall carry with it the power to proceed to any protective measures”. The plaintiff’s application against the attachment order of 14 December 2011 has become redundant. It is replaced by the second attachment, at least temporarily until there is a ruling on the merits in the third-party proceedings initiated by the plaintiff.