Opinion of the European Central Bank of 16 November 2001 at the request of the Federal Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Austria on a draft law amending the Lawyers' Fees Act on the introduction of the euro (Euro- Rechtsanwaltstarif- Novelle) (CON/2001/37)
Date: 2001-11-16
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: Austria, euro, lawyer, monetary integration, money, national law, remuneration of work

EN

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

of 16 November 2001

at the request of the Federal Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Austria on a draft law

amending the Lawyers' Fees Act on the introduction of the euro (Euro-Rechtsanwaltstarif-

Novelle)

(CON/2001/37)

1. 

On 24 October 2001 the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the Ministry of

Justice of the Republic of Austria for an opinion on a draft law amending the Lawyers' Fees Act

(Euro-Rechtsanwaltstarif-Novelle), hereinafter referred to as the “draft law”.

2.

The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on the second indent of Article 105(4) of

the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community,  the  second  indent  of  Article  4(a)  of  the

Statute  of  the  European  System  of  Central  Banks  and  of  the  European  Central  Bank  and  the

first indent of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation
of  the  ECB  by  national  authorities  regarding  draft  legislative  provisions1,  as  the  legislative
proposal contains provisions concerning currency matters. The Governing Council of the ECB

has adopted this opinion in accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the Rules of

Procedure of the ECB.

3. 

The  main  purpose  of  the  draft  law  is  the  substitution  of  schilling  amounts  and  thresholds  by

euro  amounts  and  thresholds  in  the  law  relating  to  lawyers’  fees.  Furthermore,  the  draft  law

contains 

some  minor 

amendments 

to 

the  Court  Commission 

Fees  Act

(Gerichtskommisssionstarifgesetz)  and  the  Notary  Fees  Act  (Notariatstarifgesetz)  in  line  with

the principles of revenue and cost neutrality.

4. 

The replacement of schilling amounts with euro amounts for the purposes  of  lawyers’  fees  is

based on the following principles:

(cid:1) 

thresholds  are  to  be  rounded  up  or  down  to  whole  10  euro  amounts  in  order  to  obtain

convenient and practical figures, 

1

OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42.

                                                          
(cid:1) 

in order to preserve cost neutrality, the fees are to be rounded up or down to full 10 cent

amounts. 

5. 

The ECB notes that according to the explanatory memorandum, the conversion of lawyers' fees

into euro commenced only after the entry into force of their adjustment in line with inflation on

1 July 2001.

6. 

The ECB welcomes the draft law, which provides for the substitution of schilling amounts with

euro amounts for the purposes of lawyers' fees. Such adjustments are in the  interests  of  legal

clarity and the transparency of the national legal system.

7. 

The  ECB  welcomes  the  intention  of  the  draft  law  to  comply  with  the  principle  of  cost

neutrality. In its opinions of 17 May 2001 on a draft Second Federal Law containing ancillary

measures for the introduction of the euro (2. Euro-Justiz-Begleitgesetz), of 24 August 2001 on a

draft  law  amending  Austrian  criminal  law  (Strafrechtsänderungsgesetz 2001)  and  of  28

September 2001 on a draft law amending court fees (Euro-Gerichtsgebühren-Novelle), the ECB

underlined  the  importance  of  this  principle  in  the  context  of  the  introduction  of  the  euro.

Furthermore,  it  is  again  recalled  that  at  the  meeting  of  the  Eurogroup  on  4  June  2001,  the

ministers reiterated their policy that, overall, conversion into euro of all prices, charges and fees

administered  by  their  Governments  should  be  price  neutral  or  smoothed  in  favour  of  the

consumer. 

8. 

The  ECB  confirms  that  it  has  no  objection  to  the  competent  national  authorities  making  this

opinion publicly available at their discretion.

Done at Frankfurt am Main on 16 November 2001.

The President of the ECB

[signed]

Willem F. DUISENBERG

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