Usancen Blog
OGH: No Commission despite Successful Brokerage?
Civil LawIn order for a broker to be entitled to a commission, the transaction to be brokered must have come about as a result of the broker’s contractual activity, or at least a transaction of the same value as the one to be brokered under the contract must ...
ECJ: Order Buttons Must Indicate Payment Obligation
European LawOrder buttons must be absolutely clear in their function. According to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), this means that an order button must indicate that by clicking it, a payment obligation is being created. In the case at hand, a Berlin-based ...
GER: Insurance Law and Fit Lifestyle Rebates
Civil LawIf you have a healthy lifestyle and keep fit you'll be rewarded with lower premiums, a German insurance company promised potential policyholders. However, the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, hereinafter BGH) has recently ruled tha...
OGH: Cost-of-Living Allowance and Insolvency
Procedural LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has clarified that the tax-free cost-of-living allowance (‘Teuerungsprämie’, Austrian Inflation Relief Package, see Federal Law Gazette I 2022/93) constitutes remuneration and is prot...
OGH: Signature Required for Training Reimbursement Agreement
Labour LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has explicitly clarified that an agreement to reimburse training costs according to Section 2d of the Austrian Employment Contract Law Amendment Act (Arbeitsvertragsrechts-Anpassungsg...
OGH: Unworthiness to Inherit for Having Caused Mental Suffering
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, OGH) has considered the question of disqualification from inheritance on the grounds of having inflicted the deceased severe mental suffering (Section 541(2) of the Austrian Civil Code, Allgemeines bü...
DE: ‘Inflation Bonus’ Is Garnishable
Civil LawThe inflation adjustment bonus (hereinafter referred to as inflation bonus) paid by employers is income from employment and as such is garnishable, according to the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, hereinafter BGH). In the present ...
OGH: When May a Termination Be Declared?
Labour LawThe condition of being unworthy of trust within the meaning of Section 27(1)(3) of the Austrian Employee Act (Angestelltengesetz, hereinafter AngG) is met if an employee’s behaviour has shaken the employer’s trust to such an extent that the employer ...
OGH on Warranty Exclusion in Used Car Sales
Civil LawSigns of wear and tear in accordance with the age and mileage of a vehicle must be expected by the buyer of a used car. Nevertheless, the vehicle should be in a condition which the market would normally expect. In 2021, the defendant offered his car ...
Austria: Now Higher Reimbursements in Criminal Cases
Criminal LawAfter years of urgent demands, the lump sums in the event of a not-guilty verdict have been significantly increased and, in some cases, can be exceeded. Compensation will also be introduced in the event of a case being dropped. The Austrian governmen...
OGH: Lawyers’ Liability for Corporate Administrative Fines
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has indicated that, in certain circumstances, a client may be entitled to seek reimbursement from their lawyer for a fine imposed on the client if they were given incorrect advice. In...
OGH on Remuneration under Copyright Law
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has clarified whether the picture fees of the Austrian Photographers’ Guild can be used for the determination of reasonable remuneration under Section 86 of the Austrian Copyright Act...
ECJ on Airport Understaffing and Compensation Payments
European LawThe European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that an airline is not obliged to pay compensation if it delays loading baggage because of staff shortages. It all began with a Touristic Aviation Services Ltd. (Corendon Airlines Europe) flight from Colo...
New Austrian Teleworking Act Underway
Labour LawA new teleworking law has been initiated and a draft submitted for review by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Labour and Economics. Among other things, it will amend the Employment Contract Amendment Act (Arbeitsvertragsrechts-Anpassungsgesetz, herei...
OGH: Managing Directors Close Relatives under Insolvency Law
Procedural LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has ruled that a debtor’s de facto managing director is ‘a member of the management or supervisory board’ within the meaning of Section 32(2)1 of the Austrian Bankruptcy Act (Insolven...
ECJ: Time Limits for Consumer Debt Repayment
European LawThe start of the limitation period for consumers’ claims for repayment of money owed to them under unfair contract terms has been ruled on by the European Court of Justice (ECJ). The case at hand arose out of a mortgage contract that the plaintiffs h...
OGH on the Protective Purpose of ‘No-Overtaking’
Civil LawIn order for there to be contributory negligence as a result of a breach of a protective rule, the breach of the rule must have the purpose of preventing a harmful event. It is therefore necessary that contributory negligence was involved. The plaint...
OGH: Service by Notice Board only after Other Attempts
Procedural LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has clarified the requirements for service of an action by publication in the Ediktsdatei* notice board under Section 92 of the Austrian Code of Civil Procedure (Zivilprozessordnung, ...
OGH: Serial Claims Clause in Professional Liability Insurances
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has ruled that a Chartered Public Accountant’s excess liability insurance cannot invalidate a serial claims clause agreed between the accountant and their basic insurance. The plainti...
EU: Booking.com Now Gatekeeper
European LawBooking.com is now a gatekeeper for online bookings. This is based on the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and was recently decided by the EU Commission. Booking.com has thus been added the list of the most important platform services. Within the next six m...
OGH: Do Crimes within the Family Disqualify from Inheriting?
Civil LawIn the present case, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) dealt with Section 166 of the Austrian Criminal Code (Strafgesetzbuch, hereinafter StGB) and Section 539 of the Austrian General Civil Code (Allgemeines Bürgerlic...
Dog Injures Trainer: When the G&Ts ‘Bite’
Civil LawUnusual provisions in general terms and conditions do not become part of the contract if they are unfavourable to the other party and could not have been expected under the circumstances, according to Section 864a of the Austrian Civil Code (Allgemei...
OGH Rules on Value Protection Clause in Residential Leases
Civil LawThe Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has ruled that the following value protection clause is invalid: ‘Value is currently safeguarded in accordance with the Consumer Price Index 2015 (CPI 2015), which is published monthl...
ECJ: Can Foreign EncroChat Data Be Used in Court?
European LawDecrypting EncroChat was a major step taken by security services to fight organised crime. But the question now is: Under what conditions can EncroChat data be transmitted or used in criminal proceedings that cross national borders? EncroChat is an e...
GER: Unintended Trip Cancellation – 5 Wrong Clicks Is Unrealistic
Civil LawBased on the general experience of life, it can happen that individuals accidentally click on something once that does not correspond to what they really intended to do. However, when cancelling a trip by means of a procedure involving a total of fiv...
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