Judgment of the Court (Eighth Chamber) of 21 October 2021 – T. B. and D. (Jurisdiction in insurance matters)
(Case C‑393/20)
(Reference for a preliminary ruling – Judicial cooperation in civil matters – Jurisdiction and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters – Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 – Jurisdiction in insurance matters – Article 11(1)(b) – Article 12 – Article 13(2) – Scope ratione personae – Concept of ‘injured party’ – Professional – Special jurisdiction – Article 7(2))
1. |
Judicial cooperation in civil matters – Jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters – Regulation No 1215/2012 – Jurisdiction in insurance matters – Autonomous system for the conferral of jurisdiction (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1215/2012, Arts 6, 7(2) and (5), and 10 to 16) (see para. 29) |
2. |
Judicial cooperation in civil matters – Jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters – Regulation No 1215/2012 – Jurisdiction in insurance matters – Aim – Protection of the weaker party – Concept of the weaker party – Professional engaged in the recovery of insurance indemnity claims as a contractual assignee – Not included (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1215/2012, Recital 18 and Arts 11(1)(b) and 13(2)) (see paras 32, 33, 35) |
3. |
Judicial cooperation in civil matters – Jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters – Regulation No 1215/2012 – Jurisdiction in insurance matters – Actions brought against the insurer – Direct action brought by the injured party – Concept of ‘injured party’ – Company providing services to the party directly injured in a road accident in return for an insurance indemnity claim – Recovery of indemnity claims as a contractual assignee outside of a professional activity in the field of recovery of such claims – Not included (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1215/2012, Recital 18 and Arts 11(1)(b) and 13(2)) (see paras 38, 40-43, operative part 1) |
4. |
Judicial cooperation in civil matters – Jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters – Regulation No 1215/2012 – Special jurisdiction – Jurisdiction in tort, delict or quasi-delict – Scope – Dispute between a professional who acquired a claim from a party injured in a road accident and an insurance company – Included – Verification of the specific conditions for application a matter for the national court (European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1215/2012, Art. 7(2)) (see paras 49-52, 54, operative part 2) |
Operative part
1. |
Article 13(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters, read in conjunction with Article 11(1)(b) of that regulation, must be interpreted as meaning that it cannot be relied on by a company that, in consideration for services that it provided to a party directly injured in a road accident in connection with the damage caused, has acquired a claim for compensation, but does not carry out the professional activity of recovering insurance indemnity claims against insurance companies and who brought an action, in the court for the place where it is established, against the third-party liability insurer of the party responsible for that accident. |
2. |
Article 7(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 must be interpreted as meaning that it may be relied on by a professional who acquired, under an assignment agreement, a claim from a party injured in a road accident in order to bring a civil-liability action before a court of the Member State in which the accident occurred against the insurer of the party responsible for that accident, which insurer has its seat in a Member State other than the Member State in which the accident occurred, provided that the conditions for the application of this provision are met, which it is for the referring court to determine. |