{"attribution":{"source":"legal.exploreworldai.com","canonical":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/judgment-text?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","cite_as":"NovaCopilot, legal.exploreworldai.com (https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/judgment-text?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198)","license":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/revision","version":"legal-2026-11-03","fingerprint":"ewai:eu:96c5d4","proof":"sha256:8a12b7aeaa82efef41da0da4f8a3c22f9c82442073587433fb0ac4f97a03ffc1","jurisdiction":"eu","lang":"en","publisher":"NovaCopilot by ExploreWorld Legal","terms":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/om"},"brand_source":"Source: NovaCopilot","item":{"schema_version":"1.0.0","id":"eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","jurisdiction":"eu","lang":"en","brand_source":"Source: NovaCopilot","brand":{"product":"NovaCopilot","platform":"ExploreWorldAI","infrastructure":"ExploreWorld Legal","infrastructure_url":"legal.exploreworldai.com","legal_entity":"Valkiv Ventures AB","permanent_url":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/novacopilot","source":"Source: NovaCopilot","powered_by":"Powered by NovaCopilot","license":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/licensvillkor"},"sections":[{"title":"Provisional text","paragraphs":[]},{"title":"JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fourth Chamber)","paragraphs":[]},{"title":"21 May 2026 ( * )","paragraphs":["para_4","para_5","para_6"]},{"title":"TQ","paragraphs":["para_8","para_9","para_10","para_11","para_12","para_13","para_14","para_15","para_16","para_17","para_18","para_19","para_20","para_21","para_22"]},{"title":"Judgment","paragraphs":["para_24","para_25"]},{"title":"Legal context","paragraphs":[]},{"title":"3         Recitals 5, 11 and 14 of Regulation No 655/2014 state:","paragraphs":["para_28","para_29","para_30","para_31","para_32","para_33","para_34","para_35","para_36","para_37","para_38","para_39","para_40","para_41"]},{"title":"2.      The application shall include the following information:","paragraphs":["para_43","para_44","para_45","para_46"]},{"title":"8         Under Article 22 of that regulation, entitled ‘Recognition and enforceability’:","paragraphs":["para_48"]},{"title":"The dispute in the main proceedings and the question referred for a preliminary ruling","paragraphs":["para_50","para_51","para_52","para_53","para_54","para_55","para_56","para_57","para_58","para_59","para_60","para_61","para_62","para_63"]},{"title":"The request that the oral part of the procedure be reopened","paragraphs":["para_65","para_66","para_67","para_68","para_69","para_70","para_71","para_72","para_73","para_74"]},{"title":"Consideration of the question referred","paragraphs":["para_76","para_77","para_78","para_79","para_80","para_81","para_82","para_83","para_84","para_85","para_86","para_87","para_88","para_89","para_90","para_91","para_92","para_93","para_94","para_95","para_96","para_97","para_98","para_99","para_100","para_101","para_102","para_103","para_104","para_105","para_106"]},{"title":"Costs","paragraphs":["para_108"]},{"title":"On those grounds, the Court (Fourth Chamber) hereby rules:","paragraphs":["para_110","para_111","para_112","para_113"]}],"paragraphs":[{"text":"Provisional text","paragraph_id":"para_1"},{"text":"JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fourth Chamber)","paragraph_id":"para_2"},{"text":"21 May 2026 ( * )","paragraph_id":"para_3"},{"text":"( Reference for a preliminary ruling – Cooperation in civil and commercial matters – Regulation (EU) No 655/2014 – European Account Preservation Order procedure to facilitate cross-border debt recovery in civil and commercial matters – Conditions for issuing – Article 7(1) – Urgency – Real risk that …","paragraph_id":"para_4"},{"text":"In Case C‑198/24,","paragraph_id":"para_5"},{"text":"REQUEST for a preliminary ruling under Article 267 TFEU from the Landesgericht für Zivilrechtssachen Wien (Regional Court for Civil Matters, Vienna, Austria), made by decision of 8 March 2024, received at the Court on 12 March 2024, in the proceedings","paragraph_id":"para_6"},{"text":"TQ","paragraph_id":"para_7"},{"text":"v","paragraph_id":"para_8"},{"text":"Mr Green Limited,","paragraph_id":"para_9"},{"text":"THE COURT (Fourth Chamber),","paragraph_id":"para_10"},{"text":"composed of I. Jarukaitis, President of the Chamber, F. Biltgen, President of the First Chamber, acting as a Judge of the Fourth Chamber, N. Jääskinen (Rapporteur), R. Frendo and M. Bošnjak, acting as a Judge of the Fourth Chamber, Judges,","paragraph_id":"para_11"},{"text":"Advocate General: N. Emiliou,","paragraph_id":"para_12"},{"text":"Registrar: E. Sartori, Administrator,","paragraph_id":"para_13"},{"text":"having regard to the written procedure and further to the hearing on 19 June 2025,","paragraph_id":"para_14"},{"text":"after considering the observations submitted on behalf of:","paragraph_id":"para_15"},{"text":"–        TQ, by S.R. Thorstensen, Rechtsanwalt,","paragraph_id":"para_16"},{"text":"–        Mr Green Limited, by C. Leitgeb, Rechtsanwalt,","paragraph_id":"para_17"},{"text":"–        the Belgian Government, by M. Jacobs and M. Van Regemorter, acting as Agents and by R. Verbeke and Ph. Vlaemminck, advocaten,","paragraph_id":"para_18"},{"text":"–        the Maltese Government, by A. Buhagiar, acting as Agent, and by D. Sarmiento Ramírez-Escudero, abogado, D. Inguanez and K. Sammut, avukati,","paragraph_id":"para_19"},{"text":"–        the European Commission, by S. Noë and L. Wildpanner, acting as Agents,","paragraph_id":"para_20"},{"text":"after hearing the Opinion of the Advocate General at the sitting on 30 October 2025,","paragraph_id":"para_21"},{"text":"gives the following","paragraph_id":"para_22"},{"text":"Judgment","paragraph_id":"para_23"},{"text":"1         This request for a preliminary ruling concerns the interpretation of Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 655/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a European Account Preservation Order procedure to facilitate cross-border debt recovery in civil and commercial matters (OJ 2014 L 189, p. 59).","paragraph_id":"para_24"},{"text":"2         The request has been made in proceedings between TQ, a natural person residing in Austria, and Mr Green Limited, an operator of online games of chance established in Malta, concerning an application for a European Account Preservation Order in respect of that operator.","paragraph_id":"para_25"},{"text":"Legal context","paragraph_id":"para_26"},{"text":"3         Recitals 5, 11 and 14 of Regulation No 655/2014 state:","paragraph_id":"para_27"},{"text":"‘(5)      National procedures for obtaining protective measures such as account preservation orders exist in all Member States, but the conditions for the grant of such measures and the efficiency of their implementation vary considerably. Moreover, recourse to national protective measures may prove …","paragraph_id":"para_28"},{"text":"…","paragraph_id":"para_29"},{"text":"(11)      The procedure for a Preservation Order should be available to a creditor wishing to secure the enforcement of a later judgment on the substance of the matter prior to initiating proceedings on the substance of the matter and at any stage during such proceedings. It should also be available to a creditor who has already obtained a judgment, court settlement or authentic instrument requiring the debtor to pay the creditor’s claim.","paragraph_id":"para_30"},{"text":"…","paragraph_id":"para_31"},{"text":"(14)      The conditions for issuing the Preservation Order should strike an appropriate balance between the interest of the creditor in obtaining an Order and the interest of the debtor in preventing abuse of the Order.","paragraph_id":"para_32"},{"text":"…","paragraph_id":"para_33"},{"text":"Furthermore, the creditor should be required in all situations, including when he has already obtained a judgment, to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the court that his claim is in urgent need of judicial protection and that, without the Order, the enforcement of the existing or a future judgment …","paragraph_id":"para_34"},{"text":"The court should assess the evidence submitted by the creditor to support the existence of such a risk. This could relate, for instance, to the debtor’s conduct in respect of the creditor’s claim or in a previous dispute between the parties, to the debtor’s credit history, to the nature of the debto …","paragraph_id":"para_35"},{"text":"4         Article 1 of that regulation, ‘Subject matter’, provides, in paragraph 1 thereof:","paragraph_id":"para_36"},{"text":"‘This Regulation establishes a Union procedure enabling a creditor to obtain a European Account Preservation Order (‘Preservation Order’ or ‘Order’) which prevents the subsequent enforcement of the creditor’s claim from being jeopardised through the transfer or withdrawal of funds up to the amount specified in the Order which are held by the debtor or on his behalf in a bank account maintained in a Member State.’","paragraph_id":"para_37"},{"text":"5         Article 7 of that regulation, entitled ‘Conditions for issuing a Preservation Order’, provides, in paragraph 1 thereof:","paragraph_id":"para_38"},{"text":"‘The court shall issue the Preservation Order when the creditor has submitted sufficient evidence to satisfy the court that there is an urgent need for a protective measure in the form of a Preservation Order because there is a real risk that, without such a measure, the subsequent enforcement of the creditor’s claim against the debtor will be impeded or made substantially more difficult.’","paragraph_id":"para_39"},{"text":"6         Article 8 of that regulation, entitled ‘Application for a Preservation Order’ states:","paragraph_id":"para_40"},{"text":"‘1.      Applications for a Preservation Order shall be lodged using the form established in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 52(2).","paragraph_id":"para_41"},{"text":"2.      The application shall include the following information:","paragraph_id":"para_42"},{"text":"…","paragraph_id":"para_43"},{"text":"(j)      a description of all relevant circumstances justifying the issuing of the Preservation Order as required by Article 7(1)’.","paragraph_id":"para_44"},{"text":"7         Article 17 of Regulation No 655/2014, entitled ‘Decision on the application for a Preservation Order’, provides in paragraph 1 thereof:","paragraph_id":"para_45"},{"text":"‘The court seised of an application for a Preservation Order shall examine whether the conditions and requirements set out in this Regulation are met.’","paragraph_id":"para_46"},{"text":"8         Under Article 22 of that regulation, entitled ‘Recognition and enforceability’:","paragraph_id":"para_47"},{"text":"‘A Preservation Order issued in a Member State in accordance with this Regulation shall be recognised in the other Member States without any special procedure being required and shall be enforceable in the other Member States without the need for a declaration of enforceability.’","paragraph_id":"para_48"},{"text":"The dispute in the main proceedings and the question referred for a preliminary ruling","paragraph_id":"para_49"},{"text":"9         TQ, who resides in Austria, has, from the territory of that Member State, gambled online in games offered by Mr Green, a company established in Malta which holds a Maltese licence for online gambling, but not the corresponding Austrian licence under the Bundesgesetz zur Regelung des Glücks …","paragraph_id":"para_50"},{"text":"10       TQ brought an action before the Landesgericht für Zivilrechtssachen Wien (Regional Court for Civil Matters, Vienna, Austria), which is the referring court, against Mr Green seeking reimbursement of the losses referred to above, maintaining that, since Mr Green did not hold a licence under t …","paragraph_id":"para_51"},{"text":"11       Mr Green brought an appeal against that judgment before the Oberlandesgericht Wien (Higher Regional Court, Vienna, Austria), which dismissed that appeal by judgment of 21 February 2022. That judgment and the initial judgment became final and enforceable on 13 April 2022.","paragraph_id":"para_52"},{"text":"12       Since the amounts referred to above had not been refunded to him, on 13 February 2024 TQ applied to the Bezirksgericht Innere Stadt Wien (District Court, Inner City of Vienna, Austria) for a European Account Preservation Order (‘the Preservation Order’), pursuant to Regulation No 655/2014, …","paragraph_id":"para_53"},{"text":"13       Before that court, TQ argued that, in essence, for the purposes of adopting that order, it was necessary to take account of the fact that, after the delivery by the Austrian courts around January 2021 of a number of judgments authorising enforcement in proceedings similar to those which gav …","paragraph_id":"para_54"},{"text":"14       By judgment of 15 February 2024, the Bezirksgericht Innere Stadt Wien (District Court, Inner City of Vienna) dismissed TQ’s application for a Preservation Order on the ground that (i) the events which occurred in 2021 did not lead to the conclusion that enforcement of TQ’s claim was made im …","paragraph_id":"para_55"},{"text":"15       TQ brought an appeal before the referring court against that judgment, seeking to have that judgment altered so as to grant its application for a Preservation Order in respect of Mr Green’s relevant bank accounts.","paragraph_id":"para_56"},{"text":"16       In that regard, the referring court states, first of all, that, under its interpretation of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014, two conditions must be satisfied in order for the Preservation Order to be adopted, namely (i) that the seizure is urgent and (ii) that there is a risk that, w …","paragraph_id":"para_57"},{"text":"17       The referring court is uncertain, next, as to the relevance, when assessing the conditions laid down in Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014, of the amendment dated 12 June 2023 to the Maltese Gaming Act (‘the amendment to the Maltese Gaming Act’), which introduced an Article 56A (‘Articl …","paragraph_id":"para_58"},{"text":"18       In that context, the referring court is of the view that (i) in the light of its wording, Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 could be understood as meaning that the ‘real risk’ that, without such seizure, the enforcement of claims would be impeded or made substantially more difficult wo …","paragraph_id":"para_59"},{"text":"19       Second, recital 14 of Regulation No 655/2014 recognises the decisive importance of balancing the interests of the creditor against those of the debtor and refers, for the purposes of the risk concerned, to conduct attributable to the debtor, while the actions of third parties are not mentio …","paragraph_id":"para_60"},{"text":"20       Lastly, according to the referring court, Austrian claimants have, in comparable situations, sought to enforce judgments in their favour in Malta in cases concerning games of chance and the Prim’Awla tal-Qorti Ċivili (First Hall of the Civil Court, Malta) has refused to make a reference to …","paragraph_id":"para_61"},{"text":"21       In those circumstances, the Landesgericht für Zivilrechtssachen Wien (Regional Court for Civil Matters, Vienna) decided to stay the proceedings and to refer the following question to the Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling:","paragraph_id":"para_62"},{"text":"‘Is Article 7(1) of Regulation [No 655/2014] to be interpreted as meaning that action taken by the debtor three years or more previously and/or obstacles to enforcement of the judgment in the Member State of the debtor are not to be taken into account?’","paragraph_id":"para_63"},{"text":"The request that the oral part of the procedure be reopened","paragraph_id":"para_64"},{"text":"22       By documents lodged at the Registry of the Court of Justice on 21 and 24 November 2025, respectively, the Maltese Government and Mr Green requested the Court to order the reopening of the oral part of the procedure, pursuant to Article 83 of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice.","paragraph_id":"para_65"},{"text":"23       In support of its application, Mr Green submits, in essence, that the Advocate General, in point 66 of his Opinion, incorrectly presented that company’s position regarding its alleged intention to rely on Article 56A in order to oppose the enforcement of the judgments concerned in Malta.","paragraph_id":"para_66"},{"text":"24       The Maltese Government, for its part, in support of its request, submits that the Advocate General’s Opinion contains a number of inaccuracies as regards the application by the Maltese courts of Article 56A and the fact that that provision makes it possible to ‘conceal’ the debtor’s funds from the creditor.","paragraph_id":"para_67"},{"text":"25       In that regard, it should, first, be noted that, under the second paragraph of Article 252 TFEU, it is the duty of the Advocate General, acting with complete impartiality and independence, to make, in open court, reasoned submissions on cases which, in accordance with the Statute of the Cou …","paragraph_id":"para_68"},{"text":"26       Second, the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union and the Rules of Procedure make no provision for the parties or the interested persons referred to in Article 23 of that statute to submit observations in response to the Advocate General’s Opinion. Therefore, the fact that a …","paragraph_id":"para_69"},{"text":"27       It follows that, in so far as, by their respective requests to reopen the oral part of the procedure, the Maltese Government and Mr Green are seeking to respond to the Advocate General’s position in his Opinion and to clarify certain factual matters, those requests must be rejected.","paragraph_id":"para_70"},{"text":"28       It is true that, pursuant to Article 83 of the Rules of Procedure, the Court may, at any time after hearing the Advocate General, order the reopening of the oral part of the procedure, in particular if it considers that it lacks sufficient information or where a party has, after the close o …","paragraph_id":"para_71"},{"text":"29       However, in the present case, the Court considers that it has, following the written part of the procedure and the hearing held before it, all the information necessary to rule on the request for a preliminary ruling. In addition, the information put forward by the Maltese Government and by …","paragraph_id":"para_72"},{"text":"30       So far as concerns, more specifically, the factual information found in paragraphs 23 and 24 of the present judgment, it should be borne in mind that the Court does not have the task of establishing the alleged facts but solely that of interpreting the relevant provisions of EU law. Accordi …","paragraph_id":"para_73"},{"text":"31       In those circumstances, the Court considers, after hearing the Advocate General, that there is no need to order that the oral part of the procedure be reopened.","paragraph_id":"para_74"},{"text":"Consideration of the question referred","paragraph_id":"para_75"},{"text":"32       By its single question, the referring court is, in essence, asking the Court whether Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 must be interpreted as meaning that a national court hearing an application for a Preservation Order may take into account, in order to determine whether there is an u …","paragraph_id":"para_76"},{"text":"33       By Article 1 thereof, Regulation No 655/2014 establishes at EU level a procedure enabling a creditor to obtain an Account Preservation Order, which prevents the subsequent enforcement of the creditor’s claim from being jeopardised by the transfer or withdrawal of funds up to the amount spec …","paragraph_id":"para_77"},{"text":"34       Article 17(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 provides that the court seised of an application for a Preservation Order must examine whether the conditions and requirements set out in that regulation are met.","paragraph_id":"para_78"},{"text":"35       The conditions for issuing a Preservation Order are set out in Article 7 of Regulation No 655/2014.","paragraph_id":"para_79"},{"text":"36       Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 provides that the court is to issue the Preservation Order when the creditor has submitted sufficient evidence to satisfy the court that there is an urgent need for a protective measure in the form of a Preservation Order because there is a real risk that, without such a measure, the subsequent enforcement of the creditor’s claim against the debtor will be impeded or made substantially more difficult.","paragraph_id":"para_80"},{"text":"37       As the Court has held, Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 provides that, in order to have a Preservation Order issued pursuant to that provision, the creditor is required to establish only that that measure is needed as a matter of urgency on account of imminent risk regarding the subse …","paragraph_id":"para_81"},{"text":"38       As the Advocate General also pointed out in point 49 of his Opinion, it is clear from the wording of Article 7(1) that it lays down an obligation for the creditor to demonstrate that there is an ‘urgent need’ to adopt a Preservation Order, such urgency being established by the existence of …","paragraph_id":"para_82"},{"text":"39       Therefore, Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 must be interpreted as meaning that there is an urgent need to issue a Preservation Order where there is a real risk that, without such an order, enforcement of the claim by the time when the creditor is able to have an existing or future judgment enforced will be impeded or made substantially more difficult.","paragraph_id":"para_83"},{"text":"40       It follows from the foregoing that the relevance of the circumstances noted by the referring court in the question it referred for a preliminary ruling must be assessed in the light of the condition of urgency as to the need to adopt a Preservation Order, established by there being such a r …","paragraph_id":"para_84"},{"text":"41       According to settled case-law, in interpreting a provision of EU law, it is necessary to consider both its wording, the context in which it occurs and the objectives pursued by the rules of which it is part (see, to that effect, judgments of 17 November 1983, Merck , 292/82, EU:C:1983:335, paragraph 12; of 18 December 2025, E. (Set-off of claims) , C‑481/24, EU:C:2025:996, paragraph 29; and of 22 January 2026, NOVIS , C‑18/24, EU:C:2026:33, paragraph 49).","paragraph_id":"para_85"},{"text":"42       In that regard, concerning, in the first place, the concept of ‘real risk’ within the meaning of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 and, in particular, the wording of that provision, it must be stated that it is clear from that wording and, in particular, from the use of the qualifying …","paragraph_id":"para_86"},{"text":"43       As regards the context of Article 7(1), it should be noted that recital 14 of Regulation No 655/2014 provides clarification as to the scope of that concept.","paragraph_id":"para_87"},{"text":"44       In that regard, it is apparent, in essence, from the third paragraph of recital 14 that, in order to convince the court before which the creditor’s action is brought that that creditor’s claim is in urgent need of judicial protection, the creditor must demonstrate that there is a real risk …","paragraph_id":"para_88"},{"text":"45       On the basis of a combined reading of the third and fourth paragraphs of that recital 14, the ‘real risk’, within the meaning of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014, must be understood as being a risk which has its origin in an intentional action by the debtor and, in particular, in the …","paragraph_id":"para_89"},{"text":"46       That interpretation is supported by the travaux préparatoires for Regulation No 655/2014 and, in particular, by the Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council creating a European Account Preservation Order to facilitate cross-border debt recovery in civil and co …","paragraph_id":"para_90"},{"text":"47       The interpretation of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 found in paragraph 45 of the present judgment is also supported by the objectives of that regulation, which aims not only to establish an EU-level procedure, which is available to the creditor as an alternative to preservation mea …","paragraph_id":"para_91"},{"text":"48       In view of the potentially negative impact of a Preservation Order on the debtor’s assets and, in particular, on his freedom to dispose of them, an interpretation of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 whereby any threat to the enforcement of the claim would constitute a ‘real risk’, within the meaning of that provision, would be liable to undermine the balance referred to in the preceding paragraph of the present judgment.","paragraph_id":"para_92"},{"text":"49       As regards the circumstances capable of demonstrating that there is a ‘real risk’, as defined in paragraphs 42 and 45 of the present judgment, it should be recalled, first of all, that Article 8 of Regulation No 655/2014, which governs the application for a Preservation Order, provides in p …","paragraph_id":"para_93"},{"text":"50       In that regard, the fourth subparagraph of recital 14 of Regulation No 655/2014 contains a list of circumstances on which the creditor may rely in order to justify the issuing of the Preservation Order and which may be taken into account by the court before which the application is brought when it assesses whether there is a ‘real risk’, within the meaning of Article 7(1) of that regulation.","paragraph_id":"para_94"},{"text":"51       That list includes the debtor’s conduct in respect of the creditor’s claim or in a previous dispute between the parties, the debtor’s credit history, the nature of the debtor’s assets and any recent action taken by the debtor with regard to those assets. A number of other circumstances are …","paragraph_id":"para_95"},{"text":"52       In addition, having regard to the objectives pursued by Regulation No 655/2014, as recalled in paragraph 47 of the present judgment, it should be observed that, first, in order to ensure that an appropriate balance is struck between the interests of the creditor and those of the debtor, and …","paragraph_id":"para_96"},{"text":"53       Second, the creditor’s application to have such an order issued must be based on specific evidence capable of proving that it is probable that, if that order is not adopted, the debtor might have dissipated, concealed or destroyed his assets or have disposed of them under value by the time any enforcement measures are taken.","paragraph_id":"para_97"},{"text":"54       It is therefore apparent both from the wording of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014, from the context of that provision and from the objective pursued by that regulation that the court before which an application for a Preservation Order is brought may carry out an overall assessment o …","paragraph_id":"para_98"},{"text":"55       In the light of the foregoing, it is for the referring court, which alone has jurisdiction to rule on the facts, to carry out an overall assessment of the circumstances relied on by TQ in support of its application for a Preservation Order and to determine whether those circumstances constitute sufficient evidence that such a ‘real risk’ exists.","paragraph_id":"para_99"},{"text":"56       In the present case, that court is unsure regarding the relevance of actions by the debtor which occurred a number of years before the application for a Preservation Order was lodged and, in particular, the termination by that debtor of its commercial relationship with a payment service pro …","paragraph_id":"para_100"},{"text":"57       As regards the first of those circumstances, it must be stated that, first, as is apparent from paragraphs 51 and 54 of the present judgment, the court before which the application is brought may take account of the past conduct of the debtor when carrying out the overall assessment which i …","paragraph_id":"para_101"},{"text":"58       Second, as the Advocate General observed in point 68 of his Opinion, for companies operating online, with limited or no physical assets outside the Member State in which they are established, a credit balance which they hold with a payment operator may be one of the few assets over which th …","paragraph_id":"para_102"},{"text":"59       As regards, second, the amendment to the Maltese Gaming Act which could, according to the creditor, be capable of hindering the enforcement of its claim, in particular in so far as it requires the courts of the Member State in which the debtor is established to refuse to recognise the enfor …","paragraph_id":"para_103"},{"text":"60       It follows, as the Advocate General in essence observes in point 65 of his Opinion, that the fact of the creditor simply relying on national legislation such as that described in the preceding paragraph of the present judgment cannot be sufficient to prove that there is a ‘real risk’ within …","paragraph_id":"para_104"},{"text":"61       However, a court before which an application for a Preservation Order under Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 is brought, when carrying out an overall assessment of the relevant circumstances relied on by the creditor, may take into account national legislation, such as that referred t …","paragraph_id":"para_105"},{"text":"62       It follows from all of the foregoing that Article 7(1) of Regulation No 655/2014 must be interpreted as meaning that a national court before which an application for a European Account Preservation Order is brought may take into account, in order to establish whether there is an urgent need …","paragraph_id":"para_106"},{"text":"Costs","paragraph_id":"para_107"},{"text":"63       Since these proceedings are, for the parties to the main proceedings, a step in the action pending before the referring court, the decision on costs is a matter for that court. Costs incurred in submitting observations to the Court, other than the costs of those parties, are not recoverable.","paragraph_id":"para_108"},{"text":"On those grounds, the Court (Fourth Chamber) hereby rules:","paragraph_id":"para_109"},{"text":"Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 655/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 establishing a European Account Preservation Order procedure to facilitate cross-border debt recovery in civil and commercial matters","paragraph_id":"para_110"},{"text":"must be interpreted as meaning that a national court before which an application for a European Account Preservation Order is brought may take into account, in order to establish whether there is an urgent need to adopt that order, first, conduct of the debtor which occurred a number of years before that application was lodged and, second, the existence, in the Member State where the debtor is established, of a law capable of impeding the enforcement of the claim concerned.","paragraph_id":"para_111"},{"text":"[Signatures]","paragraph_id":"para_112"},{"text":"*       Language of the case: German.","paragraph_id":"para_113"}],"word_count":6613,"cites":["C-422/24","C-72/24","C-73/24","C-548/21","C-555/18","C-291/21","C-481/24","C-18/24"],"cited_by":[],"sha256":"ce2c8e8678a49694fbb9b34d6c29ff296a17c0e4b63159eb75ca28f7ce09cb08","source_url":"https://publications.europa.eu/resource/celex/62024CJ0198","fetched_at":"2026-10-02T02:29:46.501+00:00","canonical":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/ai/judgments/eu/c-198-24-62024cj0198","risk_graph":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/risk?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","relations_graph":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/relations?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","changes":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/eu-praxis/changes","agent":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/eu-praxis/agent?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","verification":{"stored_sha256":"ce2c8e8678a49694fbb9b34d6c29ff296a17c0e4b63159eb75ca28f7ce09cb08","recomputed_sha256":"ce2c8e8678a49694fbb9b34d6c29ff296a17c0e4b63159eb75ca28f7ce09cb08","intact":true,"checked_at":"2026-11-03T12:49:02.120Z"},"verification_scope":{"stored_hash_is_source_verification":false,"official_source_comparison":"not_performed","legal_review":"not_assessed"},"decision_object":{"schema_version":"1","object_id":"decision:eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","judgment_class":"E","operative_part":"not_in_register","cites_count":8,"word_count":6613,"decision_url":null},"agent_links":{"agent_root":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/agent.json","agent_overview":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/rapid/agent/overview"}},"hash":"sha256:8a12b7aeaa82efef41da0da4f8a3c22f9c82442073587433fb0ac4f97a03ffc1","version":"legal-2026-11-03","expires":"2026-11-04T00:00:00.000Z","dependency":{"index_version":"legal-2026-11-03+legal-2026-11-03+2026-11-03T08:46:54","content_hash":"sha256:8a12b7aeaa82efef41da0da4f8a3c22f9c82442073587433fb0ac4f97a03ffc1","revalidate_after":"2026-11-03T13:49:02.456Z","max_copy_age_seconds":3600,"policy":"revalidate-required; attribution-preferred","changelog":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/dependency","verify":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/verify","stale_copy_invalid":true},"canonical":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/judgment-text?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198","follow":[{"rel":"risk","href":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/risk?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198"},{"rel":"relations","href":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/relations?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198"},{"rel":"agent","href":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/eu-praxis/agent?id=eu:c-198-24-62024cj0198"},{"rel":"changes","href":"https://legal.exploreworldai.com/api/public/v1/whats-new?jurisdiction=eu"}],"disclaimer":"Source reference with official identifier. 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