Brussels, 15/10/2015 (Agence Europe) - EU citizens should not necessarily have a right to translation or interpretation free of charge should they be required to form an objection in writing against a penalty order in another member state. They must, however, have the full legal deadline, something that is not the case in Germany.
That was the finding of the Court of Justice of the EU in a ruling handed down on Thursday 15 October. In this case (C-216/14), the Court did not entirely accept the opinion of the Advocate General (see EUROPE 11310) on how the German legislation should be interpreted in relation to Directive 2010/64/EU, which provides for the assistance of an interpreter when a person charged is unable to speak the language of the court.
The Court pointed out that provision is made for the assistance of a translator free of charge only in the event of having to form an objection in writing, without the assistance of a lawyer, in another member state for documents considered essential. It is for the German court to determine if the objection in writing against a penalty order should be considered essential.
The Court noted that there is no guaranteed prescribed period in Germany for forming an objection. Under German legislation, the order imposing a fine must be delivered to authorised persons in Germany, if the person concerned does not reside in that country. An appeal may be lodged but only within two weeks of the order being served with the authorised persons. The Court says that the right of defence cannot be effectively exercised and the procedure is only fair if the person concerned has two full weeks, that is, without the prescribed period being reduced by the time it takes the authorised persons to deliver the order to the addressee. (Original version in French by Jan Kordys)