Decision of the Court of Appeals in Warsaw 1st Civil Division of 4th July 2014
I ACz 995/14

1. The defense of the limitation period is not to be tested at the stage of establishing the group’s composition.
2. The catalogue of the admissibility of the class action conditions results from Article 1 sec. 2 of the Act on Pursuing Claims in Group Proceedings and includes: the headcount of the group, the homogeneity of the claims, common factual basis of the claims, the subject of the claim being one of the items listed in the statute’s catalogue – Article 1 sec. 2, the category of the case – Article 1 sec. 2, in cases of monetary claims (unless the claim is limited to a claim on the establishment of the defendant’s liability) – standardization of the values of each group member’s claim. The hereinbefore listed conditions are exhaustive and need to be met cumulatively.
3. The Act on Pursuing Claims in Group Proceedings does not differentiate between the conditions of the admissibility of the group proceedings and conditions of affiliation to the group. “Establishing whether a person belongs to the group” is tested at the stage of establishing of the composition of the group; the establishing of the affiliation to the group nevertheless comes down to the confirmation that the conditions of the admissibility of the group proceedings are met in case of each person willing to accede to the group proceedings. Thus testing any allegations concerning one’s affiliation to the group is permissible in the above mentioned scope only.
4. A decision on the establishing of the composition of the group plays a vital role in any group proceedings. It should be stressed that it is not a declaration of will to join the group proceedings made by the person willing to accede to the group proceedings which is the decisive factor, but the decision of the court on the establishment of the group composition only. Thus the final subjective framework of the given group proceedings is formalized in the court’s decision; the core idea of group proceedings is the fact that these lawsuits – brought by no fewer than 10 claimants – are based on a common factual basis. A legally valid court decision on the group’s composition closes the second stage of the proceedings, at the same time completing the determination of the subjective and objective scope of the case.
5. Setting up the limitation period itself does not determine the dismissal of the statement of claims in a definitive way. Before the court makes such a decision, it must determine whether the claimant’s statement on the lapse of this period is justified in the legal and factual circumstances of the case. This means that the determination of the legitimacy of the defense can be made during the examination of the case only, and this stage of the proceeding is opened with the issuance of a decision establishing the composition of the group and is completed with the issuance of the judgment in meriti.

The Court of Appeals in Warsaw, 1^st Civil Division with the following ruling bench:

The Chairman:                    Robert Otrębski, Court of Appeals Judge

The Judges:                        Edyta Jefimko (rapporteur), Court of Appeals Judge; Małgorzata Rybicka-Pakuła, Court of Appeals Judge

after hearing the case on 4th July in Warsaw in a closed session at the suit of M.B. as the representative of the group: (…) against (…) Limited Liability Company for payment as a result of the Defendant’s appeal against the decision of the Regional Court in Warsaw dated 4^th April 2014, case file reference: I C 948/12 in the subject of the establishment of the composition of the group

decides to:

dismiss the appeal.