Payment order based on an electronic invoice and immediate recovery of a commercial claim
In high-value commercial claims, the decisive question is not only whether the claim is legally well founded, but how quickly it can be converted into an enforceable title and, ultimately, into actual recovery.
Papatriantafyllou & Thanasenari recently acted in the recovery of a commercial claim arising from an invoice for the provision of services, obtaining a payment order for an amount approaching €200,000, plus interest and legal costs, immediately initiating enforcement proceedings and successfully defeating two consecutive applications for interim judicial protection.
The evidentiary value of the electronic invoice and of myDATA data
In this case, the payment order was granted on the basis of a combination of contractual, tax and electronic records, including the electronic invoice, the data recorded on the myDATA platform, the parties’ email correspondence and the pre-action extrajudicial notice.
A payment order presupposes a monetary claim that is certain and liquidated, and that is proven by documentary evidence in accordance with Articles 623 et seq. of the Greek Code of Civil Procedure. In practice, an invoice issued unilaterally by the creditor does not necessarily suffice, on its own, to constitute full documentary proof of the claim.
Here, the documentary proof was built from the services agreement, the electronic invoice, the data recorded on the myDATA platform of the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), the parties’ email correspondence, the relevant tax records and the extrajudicial notice served in advance.
The invoice in question had been transmitted to myDATA, had been assigned a Unique Registration Number (MARK) and appeared as finalised, without having been rejected by the recipient. These elements were deployed together with the remaining evidence in order to establish the claim.
The case therefore illustrates the practical weight that electronic invoicing and myDATA records can carry in proving a commercial claim before the courts, where they form part of a broader and internally consistent body of documentary evidence.
Enforceable title and immediate enforcement
Proceeding by way of a payment order allowed our client to obtain an enforceable title without first having to see ordinary proceedings on the merits through to judgment.
Once the payment order had been issued and served, we moved immediately to garnishment proceedings against third parties, including credit institutions, which led to the identification and freezing of substantial sums held in the debtor’s bank accounts.
The practical significance of that choice should not be underestimated. In disputes of significant value, the worth of a legal strategy does not end with recognition of the right. Equally decisive is the ability to secure an enforceable title in good time and to deploy enforcement measures effectively, before the debtor’s asset position changes or the prospect of genuine recovery narrows.
Two applications for a stay of enforcement successfully defeated
Following the issue of the payment order and the commencement of enforcement, the debtor filed two consecutive applications for interim judicial protection, seeking to stay enforcement and to prevent the release of the frozen funds.
In both sets of proceedings, Papatriantafyllou & Thanasenari rebutted the arguments raised, submitting, among other things, that the documentary proof underpinning the payment order was complete and that the conditions for granting interim relief were not met.
The Court dismissed both applications. Enforcement was therefore able to continue and our client recovered, without further delay, sums in excess of €130,000 that had been traced and frozen in the opposing party’s bank accounts.
Our approach to the recovery of commercial claims
This case demonstrates the value of a strategy that covers the entire path of commercial debt recovery: from assessing and organising the available evidence, to selecting the appropriate procedure, obtaining an enforceable title swiftly and taking immediate measures to ensure that the creditor is actually paid.
In high-value commercial claims, effective litigation management requires an assessment, from the outset, not only of the legal and evidentiary foundations of the claim, but also of the tools available to satisfy it promptly and in substance. The ability to obtain an enforceable title quickly, and to use it without delay, can — depending on the facts of each case — prove decisive for the final outcome.
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