Expenses for the trial disputes in Latvia

According to the Civil Procedure Law of Latvia the expenses for the trial disputes consist of the court costs and the costs connected with the case.

Court costs are:

1. State fees;
2. office fees; and
3. costs related to adjudicating a matter.

Costs related to conducting a matter are:

1. costs related to assistance of advocates;
2. costs related to attending court sittings; and
3. costs related to gathering evidence.

For each statement of claim – original claims or counterclaims, applications of a third party statement of claim with an independent claim regarding the subject-matter of the dispute, submitted in a procedure already commenced, applications in special adjudication procedure matters, and other claims applications provided for in this Section submitted to the court – a State fee shall be paid in the amount set out as follows:

in regard to claims assessable as a monetary amount:

a) not exceeding 100 lats – ten lats,

b) from 101 lats to 1 000 lats – 15 per cent of the amount claimed,

c) from 1 001 lats to 5 000 lats – 150 lats plus 2.5 per cent of the amount claimed exceeding 1 000 lats,

d) from 5 001 lats to 20 000 lats – 250 lats plus 1.6 per cent of the amount claimed exceeding 5 000 lats,

e) from 20 001 lats to 100 000 lats – 490 lats plus one per cent of the amount claimed exceeding 20 000 lats,

f) from 100 001 lats to 500 000 lats – 1290 lats plus 0.3 per cent of the amount claimed exceeding 100 000 lats, and

g) exceeding 500 000 lats – 2490 lats plus 0.05 per cent of the amount claimed exceeding 500 000 lats;

in regard to a statement of claim in a matter regarding marriage dissolution – 50 lats;

• for a statement of claim regarding dissolution of a marriage with a person who has been declared missing or found to be lacking capacity to act because of mental illness or mental deficiency, or who has been sentenced to a term of deprivation of liberty of not less than three years – five lats; for applications in special adjudication procedure matters – ten lats;
• for applications in matters regarding insolvency of undertakings and companies or insolvency or liquidation of credit institutions – 100 lats;
• regard to other claims which are not financial in nature or are not required to be evaluated – twenty lats;
• for applications regarding securing of claims – twenty lats;
• for applications regarding securing of claims, where the cost exceeds 4000 lats – 0,5 per cent of the amount claimed;
• for applications regarding securing of evidence, if such application is submitted prior to initiating the matter – ten lats; for applications regarding an undisputed compulsory execution, compulsory execution of obligations in accordance with warning procedures, voluntary sale of immovable property by auction through the court or submission to the court of the subject-matter of an obligation for safekeeping thereof – one per cent of the amount of the debt, value of the property to be returned or voluntarily auctioned, or value of the subject-matter provided for safekeeping, but not exceeding 100 lats;
• for applications regarding issuing a writ of execution on the basis of an arbitration court judgment or the recognition and execution of an adjudication of a foreign arbitration court – one per cent of the amount of the debt, but not exceeding 100 lats;
• for applications regarding renewal of court proceedings and adjudicating of the matter de novo in a matter where a default judgment has been rendered – in the same amount as for a statement of claim;
• for statements of claim regarding division of joint property – 50 per cent of the rate to be paid for the statement of claim in accordance with general procedures from the value of the property to be divided

In rendering judgment, the court shall determine the State fee in the amount as follows:

In matters regarding confirmation of inheritance rights, if the value of the inheritance exceeds ten times the minimum monthly salary:

a) for the spouse of, and heirs of the first, second or third degree residing with the estate-leaver – 0.5 per cent of the value of the estate property;

b) for other heirs of the first and second degree – one per cent of the value of the estate property;

c) for other heirs of the third degree – three per cent of the value of the estate property, and

d) for heirs of the fourth degree – ten per cent of the value of the estate property;

In matters regarding last will instruction instruments or the coming into lawful effect of an inheritance contract, if the value of the inheritance exceeds ten times the minimum monthly salary:

a) for the spouse and heirs of the first, second or third degree – 50 per cent of the amount of the State fee specified in Paragraph two, Clause 1 of this Section;

b) for heirs of the fourth degree – eight per cent of the value of the estate property; and

c) for other testamentary or contractual heirs – 15 per cent of the value of the estate property;

The State fee for an appeal shall be 50 per cent of the rate which must be paid upon submitting a statement of claim (an application in a special adjudication procedure matter), but in regard to disputes of a financial nature – of the rate calculated in accordance with the disputed amount.

For an ancillary complaint regarding a court judgment a State fee shall not be charged.

When submitting a writ of execution or another execution document for execution a State fee shall be paid – one lat. When submitting a writ of execution and fulfilment of the judgement of a foreign court shall be paid – ten lats.

The amount claimed shall be:

1. n regard to claims regarding recovery of money – the amount to be recovered;
2. in regard to claims regarding recovery of property – the value of the property to be recovered;
3. in regard to claims regarding collection of means of support – the total amount to be paid within one year;
4. in regard to claims regarding term payments and remittances – the total amount of all payments and remittances, but for not more than three years;
5. in regard to claims regarding payments and remittances without term or for life – the total amount of all payments and remittances for a three year period;
6. in regard to claims regarding reduction or increase of payments or remittances – the amount by which the payments or remittances are reduced or increased, but for not more than one year;
7. in regard to claims regarding termination of payments or remittances – the total amount of the remaining payments or remittances, but for not more than one year;
8. in regard to claims regarding early termination of property lease agreements – the total amount of payments for the use of the property for the remaining period of the lease agreement, but for not more than three years;
9. in regard to claims regarding property rights with respect to immovable property – the value, but not less than the cadastral value, thereof; and
10. in claims consisting of several independent financial claims – the total sum of all the claims.
11. in regard to claims regarding termless or lifetime payments or remittances – the total amount to be paid within three years;
12. in regard to claims regarding termination of deals or its acknowledgement of not being valid – the total sum of the deal.

The plaintiff shall set out the amount claimed. If the amount claimed, as set out, manifestly does not correspond with the actual value of the property, the court shall determine the amount claimed.

State fees paid shall be repaid fully or partly in the following cases:

1. if the fee paid exceeds the fee prescribed by law;
2. if the court refuses to accept an application or leaves an application unadjudicated.
3. if the court proceedings in a matter are terminated on the grounds that the court does not have jurisdiction to adjudicate the matter.
4. if a claim is left unadjudicated on the grounds that the interested party who has brought the matter to the court has not complied with the extrajudicial examination procedures set out for the respective type of matter, or the claim has been submitted by a person lacking capacity to act.

Office fees shall be paid as follows:

1. for issuing a true copy of a document in a matter, as well as for reissuing a court judgment or decision – two lats;
2. for issuing a certificate – 0.50 lats;
3. for issuing a duplicate of a writ of execution – five lats;
4. for certifying the coming into effect of a court adjudication, if such adjudication is to be submitted to a foreign institution – three lats;
5. for summoning witnesses – three lats for each person.

Costs related to the adjudicating of matters are:

1. amounts which must be paid to witnesses and experts;
2. costs related to the examination of witnesses or conducting of inspections on-site;
3. costs related to searching for defendants;
4. costs related to execution of court judgments;
5. costs related to the service and issue, of true copies of statements of claim, and of court summonses;
6. costs related to publication of notices in newspapers;
7. costs related to security for a claim; and
8. costs related to the safeguarding, and the preparing of an inventory of an estate.

The following persons shall be exempt from payment of court costs to the State:

1. plaintiffs – in claims regarding recovery of remuneration for work and other claims of employees arising from legal employment relations or related to such;
2. plaintiffs – in regard to claims arising from personal injuries that result in mutilation or other damage to health, or the death of a person;
3. plaintiffs – in claims regarding recovery of support payments;
4. plaintiffs – in claims regarding compensation for financial loss and moral injury resulting from criminal offences;
5. prosecutors, state or local government institutions and persons who are conferred the right by law to defend the rights, and interests protected by law, of other persons in court;
6. the submitters of applications – in matters regarding the finding of a person to be lacking capacity to act, and establishment of trusteeship;
7. the submitters of applications – in regard to the establishment of trusteeship for a person because of a dissolute or spendthrift lifestyle, or excessive use of alcohol or drugs;
8. defendants – in matters regarding reduction of support payments adjudged by a court, and reduction of such payments as the court has assessed in claims arising from personal injuries resulting in mutilation or other damage to health, or the death of a person;
9. the submitters of applications – a spouse and heirs of the first and second degree, in that part of inheritance matters regarding inheritance of privatisation certificates;
10. administrators – in claims that are brought for the benefit of persons recognised as insolvent;
11. judgment creditors – in execution matters regarding recoveries for payment into State revenues; and
12. the State Revenue Service, Enterprise Register or the liquidators appointed thereof – in applications regarding recognition of persons as insolvent.