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PARALLEL TEXTS La normativa spagnola che impedisce al giudice competente a dichiarare il carattere abusivo di una clausola di un contratto di mutuo immobiliare di sospendere il procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria, promosso in altra sede, è in contrasto con il diritto dell'Unione Inglese tratto da: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_CJE-13-30_en.htm Italiano tratto da: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_CJE-13-30_it.htm Data documento: 14-03-20131 | Spanish legislation infringes EU law to the extent that it precludes the court which has jurisdiction to declare unfair a term of a loan agreement relating to immovable property from staying the mortgage enforcement proceedings initiated separately. | La normativa spagnola che impedisce al giudice competente a dichiarare il carattere abusivo di una clausola di un contratto di mutuo immobiliare di sospendere il procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria, promosso in altra sede, è in contrasto con il diritto dell'Unione | 2 | Spanish legislation lists the grounds, which are very limited, upon which a debtor may object to mortgage enforcement proceedings. | La normativa spagnola elenca i motivi, alquanto limitati, in presenza dei quali un debitore può opporsi al procedimento di esecuzione di un’ipoteca. | 3 | Those grounds do not include the existence of an unfair term in the mortgage loan agreement. | Fra questi non rientra l'esistenza di una clausola abusiva inserita in un contratto di mutuo con garanzia ipotecaria. | 4 | Thus, that fact can be relied upon only in separate declaratory proceedings which do not have the effect of staying the mortgage enforcement proceedings. | Quindi, quest'ultima circostanza può essere eccepita unicamente in un distinto procedimento di merito, il quale non sospende il procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria. | 5 | In addition, in the Spanish enforcement proceedings, the final vesting of immovable property in a third party – such as a bank – is, in principle, irreversible. | Peraltro, nell'ambito del procedimento esecutivo spagnolo, l'aggiudicazione definitiva di un bene ipotecato ad un terzo – ad esempio una banca – acquisisce in linea di principio carattere irreversibile. | 6 | Consequently, if the court hearing the declaratory proceedings declares a term of a loan agreement unfair and accordingly annuls the mortgage enforcement proceedings after enforcement has taken place, that judgment can enable that consumer to obtain only subsequent protection of a purely compensatory nature, the person evicted being unable to recover ownership of his property. | Di conseguenza, se la decisione del giudice di merito che sancisce il carattere abusivo di una clausola in un contratto di mutuo – e, di riflesso, la nullità del procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria – è pronunciata dopo che si è provveduto all'esecuzione, tale decisione garantisce al consumatore soltanto una tutela a posteriori, meramente risarcitoria, e non permette alla persona sfrattata di recuperare la proprietà del suo bene. | 7 | In July 2007, Mr Aziz, a Moroccan national residing in Spain, concluded with the bank Catalunyacaixa a loan agreement to the value of €138,000 secured by a mortgage over his family home. | Nel luglio 2007 il sig. Aziz, cittadino marocchino che lavora in Spagna, ha sottoscritto con la banca Catalunyacaixa un contratto di mutuo immobiliare per l'importo di EUR 138 000, corredato da garanzia ipotecaria gravante sulla sua abitazione familiare. | 8 | He stopped paying his instalments with effect from June 2008. | Dal giugno 2008 ha cessato di pagare le rate mensili. | 9 | After having called upon him to pay without success, the bank initiated enforcement proceedings against him. | La banca, dopo avergli intimato invano di provvedere ai pagamenti, ha promosso nei suoi confronti un procedimento esecutivo. | 10 | When Mr Aziz failed to appear, execution was ordered. | Poiché il sig. Aziz non è comparso, è stata disposta l'esecuzione. | 11 | An auction of his immovable property was arranged, but no bid was made, with the result that, in accordance with the Spanish legislation, ownership of the property was vested in the bank at 50% of its value. | Andata deserta l'asta giudiziaria del suo bene, in conformità alla normativa spagnola, la proprietà è stata aggiudicata alla banca per il 50% del suo valore. | 12 | On 20 January 2011, Mr Aziz was evicted from his home. | Il 20 gennaio 2011 il sig. Aziz è stato sfrattato dalla sua abitazione. | 13 | Shortly beforehand, he applied for a declaration seeking annulment of a term of the mortgage loan agreement, on the ground that it was unfair and, accordingly, of the mortgage enforcement proceedings. | Poco prima, egli aveva proposto una domanda giudiziale diretta a far annullare una clausola del contratto di mutuo adducendone il carattere abusivo e, pertanto, a far annullare il procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria. | 14 | In that context, the Juzgado de lo Mercantil No 3 de Barcelona (Commercial Court No 3, Barcelona) before which the case was brought, decided to ask the Court of Justice, first, about the compatibility of Spanish law with the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Directive, since Spanish law makes it extremely difficult for the court to ensure effective protection of the consumer and, second, about the essential characteristics of the concept of ‘unfair term’ within the meaning of that directive. | In questo contesto, il Juzgado de lo Mercantil (Tribunale commerciale) n. 3 di Barcellona, investito della causa, ha deciso di interpellare la Corte di giustizia, da un lato, in merito alla conformità del diritto spagnolo alla direttiva sulle clausole abusive , reputando che esso renda estremamente difficile per il giudice garantire un'efficace tutela del consumatore, dall’altro, in merito agli elementi costitutivi della nozione di «clausola abusiva» ai sensi di tale direttiva. | 15 | In today’s judgment, the Court answers, first, that the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Directive precludes national legislation, such as the Spanish legislation at issue, which does not allow the court hearing the declaratory proceedings – that is, the proceedings seeking a declaration that a term is unfair – to adopt interim measures, in particular, the staying of the enforcement proceedings, where they are necessary to guarantee the full effectiveness of its final decision. | Nell’odierna sentenza, la Corte dichiara, in primo luogo, che la direttiva sulle clausole abusive osta ad una normativa nazionale, come quella spagnola in causa, che non consente al giudice investito del procedimento di merito – ossia il procedimento diretto a dichiarare il carattere abusivo di una clausola – di emanare provvedimenti provvisori, in particolare la sospensione del procedimento esecutivo, allorché essi risultino necessari per garantire la piena efficacia della sua decisione finale. | 16 | As a preliminary point, the court recalls that, in the absence of harmonisation of the national mechanisms for enforcement, the grounds of opposition allowed in mortgage enforcement proceedings and the powers conferred on the court hearing the declaratory proceedings are a matter for the national legal order of each Member State. | In via preliminare la Corte ricorda che, in mancanza di armonizzazione dei meccanismi nazionali di esecuzione forzata, i motivi di opposizione ammessi nel contesto di un procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria e i poteri conferiti al giudice di merito rientrano nell'ordinamento giuridico interno degli Stati membri. | 17 | However, that legislation may not be any less favourable than that governing similar situations subject to domestic law (principle of equivalence) and it must not make it in practice impossible or excessively difficult to exercise the rights conferred on consumers by EU law (principle of effectiveness). | Tuttavia, questa normativa non può essere meno favorevole rispetto a quella che disciplina situazioni analoghe assoggettate al diritto interno (principio di equivalenza) e non deve rendere in pratica impossibile o eccessivamente difficile l'esercizio dei diritti riconosciuti ai consumatori dal diritto dell'Unione (principio di effettività). | 18 | With regard to the latter principle, the Court considers that the Spanish procedural system impairs the effectiveness of the protection which the directive seeks to achieve. | Orbene, per quanto attiene al principio di effettività, la Corte considera che il regime processuale spagnolo lede l'effettività della tutela cui aspira la direttiva. | 19 | That is so in all cases where enforcement is carried out in respect of the property before the court hearing the declaratory proceedings declares the contractual term on which the mortgage is based unfair and, accordingly, annuls the enforcement proceedings. | Ciò si verifica in tutte le ipotesi in cui l'esecuzione immobiliare ha luogo prima che il giudice del merito dichiari il carattere abusivo della clausola contrattuale che si trova all’origine dell'ipoteca e, di riflesso, la nullità del procedimento esecutivo. | 20 | Since the court hearing the declaratory proceedings is precluded from staying the enforcement proceedings, that declaration of invalidity allows the consumer to obtain only subsequent protection of a purely compensatory nature. | Infatti, posto che il giudice del merito non dispone della possibilità di sospendere il procedimento esecutivo, la suddetta declaratoria di nullità consente di garantire al consumatore soltanto una tutela a posteriori, meramente risarcitoria. | 21 | That compensation is thus incomplete and insufficient, and would not constitute either an adequate or effective means of preventing the continued use of those terms. | Tale risarcimento si rivela incompleto ed insufficiente e non costituisce un mezzo adeguato o efficace per far cessare l'utilizzo di tali clausole. | 22 | That applies all the more strongly where, as in this case, the mortgaged property is the family home of the consumer whose rights have been infringed, since that means of consumer protection is limited to payment of damages and interest and does not make it possible to prevent the definitive and irreversible loss of the home. | Ciò vale a maggior ragione quando, come accade nel caso di specie, il bene ipotecato costituisce l'abitazione del consumatore leso e della sua famiglia, poiché questo meccanismo di protezione dei consumatori, limitato al risarcimento dei danni, non permette di evitare la definitiva ed irreversibile perdita dell'abitazione. | 23 | It would thus be sufficient for sellers or suppliers to initiate mortgage enforcement proceedings in order to deprive consumers of the protection intended by the directive. | È sufficiente, infatti, che i professionisti promuovano un procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria per privare i consumatori del beneficio della tutela voluta dalla direttiva. | 24 | The Court therefore holds that the Spanish legislation does not comply with the principle of effectiveness, in so far as it makes impossible or excessively difficult, in mortgage enforcement proceedings initiated by sellers or suppliers against consumer defendants, to apply the protection which the directive confers on those consumers. | Pertanto, la Corte trae la conclusione che la normativa spagnola non appare conforme al principio di effettività, laddove essa rende impossibile o eccessivamente difficile, nei procedimenti di esecuzione ipotecaria avviati dai professionisti e nei quali i consumatori sono i convenuti, l'applicazione della tutela che la direttiva conferisce a questi ultimi. | 25 | Second, when examining the concept of the unfair term, the Court states that the ‘significant imbalance’ arising from such a term must be assessed taking into account the rules which would apply under national law in the absence of an agreement by the parties in that regard. | In secondo luogo, analizzando la nozione di clausola abusiva 2, la Corte rammenta che il «significativo squilibrio» generato da una siffatta clausola deve essere valutato tenendo conto delle norme applicabili nel diritto nazionale, in mancanza di un accordo tra le parti in tal senso. | 26 | To that end, an assessment of the legal situation of the consumer having regard to the means at his disposal, under national law, to prevent continued use of unfair terms, should also be carried out. | Parimenti, a tale fine risulta pertinente procedere ad esaminare la situazione giuridica in cui versa il consumatore alla luce dei mezzi che la disciplina nazionale mette a sua disposizione per far cessare il ricorso a clausole abusive. | 27 | In order to determine whether the imbalance arises ‘contrary to the requirement of good faith’, it must be assessed whether the seller or supplier, dealing fairly and equitably with the consumer, could reasonably assume that the consumer would have agreed to such a term in individual contract negotiations. | Per appurare se lo squilibrio sia creato «malgrado il requisito della buona fede» occorre verificare se il professionista, qualora avesse trattato in modo leale ed equo con il consumatore, avrebbe potuto ragionevolmente aspettarsi che quest’ultimo aderisse ad una siffatta clausola nell’ambito di un negoziato individuale. | 28 | In the light of those criteria, it is for the national court to assess whether the default interest clause inserted in the contract signed by Mr Aziz is unfair. | Alla luce di tali criteri, è compito del giudice nazionale verificare se la clausola degli interessi di mora inserita nel contratto sottoscritto dal sig. Aziz sia abusiva. | 29 | That clause provides for annual default interest of 18.75%, automatically applicable to sums not paid when due, without the need for any notice. | Questa clausola prevede interessi di mora annuali pari al 18,75%, automaticamente applicabili agli importi non saldati alla scadenza, senza che a tal fine sia necessario alcun sollecito. | 30 | The national court must in particular compare that rate with the statutory interest rate, and determine whether it is appropriate for securing the attainment of the objectives pursued in Spain and does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve them. | Il giudice nazionale dovrà in particolare comparare tale tasso al tasso di interesse legale e accertare se sia idoneo a conseguire le finalità perseguite in Spagna dagli interessi di mora e non ecceda quanto necessario per realizzarle. | 31 | Equally, the acceleration clause of the contract concerned allows the bank to call in the totality of the loan after a single failure to meet a due payment of principal or interest. | Ugualmente, la clausola sulla scadenza anticipata del contratto in oggetto consente alla banca di dichiarare esigibile l’intero importo mutuato già in seguito ad un singolo inadempimento di pagamento del capitale o degli interessi. | 32 | The national court must in particular assess whether that right is conditional upon the non-compliance by the consumer with an essential obligation of the contract and whether such non-compliance is sufficiently serious in the light of the term and amount of the loan. | Il giudice nazionale dovrà segnatamente verificare se tale facoltà dipenda dal mancato adempimento da parte del consumatore di un obbligo che presenta un carattere essenziale nel contratto e se detto inadempimento rivesta un carattere sufficientemente grave rispetto alla durata e all’importo del mutuo. | 33 | Finally, the clause on unilateral quantification of the unpaid debt stipulates that the bank may immediately quantify that amount in order to initiate mortgage enforcement proceedings. | Infine, la clausola sulla liquidazione unilaterale del debito non saldato stabilisce che la banca può presentare direttamente la liquidazione dell'importo di tale debito al fine di avviare il procedimento di esecuzione ipotecaria. | 34 | The national court must assess whether and, if appropriate, to what extent, that term makes it more difficult for the consumer, given the procedural means at his disposal, to take legal action and exercise rights of the defence. | Il giudice nazionale dovrà valutare se, e in quale misura, tale clausola renda più arduo per il consumatore, visti gli strumenti processuali di cui dispone, l'accesso alla giustizia e l'esercizio dei diritti della difesa | 35 | NOTE: | IMPORTANTE: | 36 | A reference for a preliminary ruling allows the courts and tribunals of the Member States, in disputes which have been brought before them, to refer questions to the Court of Justice about the interpretation of European Union law or the validity of a European Union act. | Il rinvio pregiudiziale consente ai giudici degli Stati membri, nell'ambito di una controversia della quale sono investiti, di interpellare la Corte in merito all’interpretazione del diritto dell’Unione o alla validità di un atto dell’Unione. | 37 | The Court of Justice does not decide the dispute itself. | La Corte non risolve la controversia nazionale. | 38 | It is for the national court or tribunal to dispose of the case in accordance with the Court’s decision, which is similarly binding on other national courts or tribunals before which a similar issue is raised. | Spetta al giudice nazionale risolvere la causa conformemente alla decisione della Corte. Tale decisione vincola egualmente gli altri giudici nazionali ai quali venga sottoposto un problema simile. |
| LISTEN WITH READSPEAKER Spanish legislation infringes EU law to the extent that it precludes the court which has jurisdiction to declare unfair a term of a loan agreement relating to immovable property from staying the mortgage enforcement proceedings initiated separately. Spanish legislation lists the grounds, which are very limited, upon which a debtor may object to mortgage enforcement proceedings. Those grounds do not include the existence of an unfair term in the mortgage loan agreement. Thus, that fact can be relied upon only in separate declaratory proceedings which do not have the effect of staying the mortgage enforcement proceedings. In addition, in the Spanish enforcement proceedings, the final vesting of immovable property in a third party – such as a bank – is, in principle, irreversible. Consequently, if the court hearing the declaratory proceedings declares a term of a loan agreement unfair and accordingly annuls the mortgage enforcement proceedings after enforcement has taken place, that judgment can enable that consumer to obtain only subsequent protection of a purely compensatory nature, the person evicted being unable to recover ownership of his property. In July 2007, Mr Aziz, a Moroccan national residing in Spain, concluded with the bank Catalunyacaixa a loan agreement to the value of €138,000 secured by a mortgage over his family home. He stopped paying his instalments with effect from June 2008. After having called upon him to pay without success, the bank initiated enforcement proceedings against him. When Mr Aziz failed to appear, execution was ordered. An auction of his immovable property was arranged, but no bid was made, with the result that, in accordance with the Spanish legislation, ownership of the property was vested in the bank at 50% of its value. On 20 January 2011, Mr Aziz was evicted from his home. Shortly beforehand, he applied for a declaration seeking annulment of a term of the mortgage loan agreement, on the ground that it was unfair and, accordingly, of the mortgage enforcement proceedings. In that context, the Juzgado de lo Mercantil No 3 de Barcelona (Commercial Court No 3, Barcelona) before which the case was brought, decided to ask the Court of Justice, first, about the compatibility of Spanish law with the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Directive, since Spanish law makes it extremely difficult for the court to ensure effective protection of the consumer and, second, about the essential characteristics of the concept of ‘unfair term’ within the meaning of that directive. In today’s judgment, the Court answers, first, that the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Directive precludes national legislation, such as the Spanish legislation at issue, which does not allow the court hearing the declaratory proceedings – that is, the proceedings seeking a declaration that a term is unfair – to adopt interim measures, in particular, the staying of the enforcement proceedings, where they are necessary to guarantee the full effectiveness of its final decision. As a preliminary point, the court recalls that, in the absence of harmonisation of the national mechanisms for enforcement, the grounds of opposition allowed in mortgage enforcement proceedings and the powers conferred on the court hearing the declaratory proceedings are a matter for the national legal order of each Member State. However, that legislation may not be any less favourable than that governing similar situations subject to domestic law (principle of equivalence) and it must not make it in practice impossible or excessively difficult to exercise the rights conferred on consumers by EU law (principle of effectiveness). With regard to the latter principle, the Court considers that the Spanish procedural system impairs the effectiveness of the protection which the directive seeks to achieve. That is so in all cases where enforcement is carried out in respect of the property before the court hearing the declaratory proceedings declares the contractual term on which the mortgage is based unfair and, accordingly, annuls the enforcement proceedings. Since the court hearing the declaratory proceedings is precluded from staying the enforcement proceedings, that declaration of invalidity allows the consumer to obtain only subsequent protection of a purely compensatory nature. That compensation is thus incomplete and insufficient, and would not constitute either an adequate or effective means of preventing the continued use of those terms. That applies all the more strongly where, as in this case, the mortgaged property is the family home of the consumer whose rights have been infringed, since that means of consumer protection is limited to payment of damages and interest and does not make it possible to prevent the definitive and irreversible loss of the home. It would thus be sufficient for sellers or suppliers to initiate mortgage enforcement proceedings in order to deprive consumers of the protection intended by the directive. The Court therefore holds that the Spanish legislation does not comply with the principle of effectiveness, in so far as it makes impossible or excessively difficult, in mortgage enforcement proceedings initiated by sellers or suppliers against consumer defendants, to apply the protection which the directive confers on those consumers. Second, when examining the concept of the unfair term, the Court states that the ‘significant imbalance’ arising from such a term must be assessed taking into account the rules which would apply under national law in the absence of an agreement by the parties in that regard. To that end, an assessment of the legal situation of the consumer having regard to the means at his disposal, under national law, to prevent continued use of unfair terms, should also be carried out. In order to determine whether the imbalance arises ‘contrary to the requirement of good faith’, it must be assessed whether the seller or supplier, dealing fairly and equitably with the consumer, could reasonably assume that the consumer would have agreed to such a term in individual contract negotiations. In the light of those criteria, it is for the national court to assess whether the default interest clause inserted in the contract signed by Mr Aziz is unfair. That clause provides for annual default interest of 18.75%, automatically applicable to sums not paid when due, without the need for any notice. The national court must in particular compare that rate with the statutory interest rate, and determine whether it is appropriate for securing the attainment of the objectives pursued in Spain and does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve them. Equally, the acceleration clause of the contract concerned allows the bank to call in the totality of the loan after a single failure to meet a due payment of principal or interest. The national court must in particular assess whether that right is conditional upon the non-compliance by the consumer with an essential obligation of the contract and whether such non-compliance is sufficiently serious in the light of the term and amount of the loan. Finally, the clause on unilateral quantification of the unpaid debt stipulates that the bank may immediately quantify that amount in order to initiate mortgage enforcement proceedings. The national court must assess whether and, if appropriate, to what extent, that term makes it more difficult for the consumer, given the procedural means at his disposal, to take legal action and exercise rights of the defence. NOTE: A reference for a preliminary ruling allows the courts and tribunals of the Member States, in disputes which have been brought before them, to refer questions to the Court of Justice about the interpretation of European Union law or the validity of a European Union act. The Court of Justice does not decide the dispute itself. It is for the national court or tribunal to dispose of the case in accordance with the Court’s decision, which is similarly binding on other national courts or tribunals before which a similar issue is raised. |