A Short Description of the Relevant Legal System for Litigation
Parties
Laws are based on codes and statutes. The Austrian legal system
is a civil law system. Civil procedure is designed as an
adversarial process with inquisitorial elements. The proceedings
— and the judge — are to a huge extent bound by the
arguments put forward by the parties. The judge is not a mere
"referee", however. For example, the judge is the primary
interrogator of parties and witnesses. Only after the judge has
finished his/her examination, the parties have the right to
examine/cross examine the witness.
The oral hearing is a fundament of civil litigation proceedings.
As opposed to other jurisdictions, written witness statements or
affidavits are – with some exceptions – not
permissible. Furthermore, the courts on first level are generally
not permitted to reach a decision based solely on written
submissions. A public hearing is obligatory. In the hearing, the
judge will determine all
