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Zápatí prezentace
Introduction to the Czech civil Law
in broader context
jan.hurdik@law.muni.cz

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Introduction to the course I
nAim of the course:
nDescription of history, contemporary situation and its crucial crossroads and future development
of Czech civil law
nMethods of course:
nGenetic-procedural (there is very rich Czech history)
nComparison (with national laws, European law..)
nDescription
nGeneralization
nContent of course
nSee info of garant of the course/on IS
n

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Introduction to the course II
n      Basic sources and literature:
nTextbook „Introduction..“ – to buy in the bookshop or to borrow from the library or to copy in the
library (+ on IS)
nSources of existing (actual) Czech Private Law
nCzech Civil Code (eng. translation of Ministry of Justice) – on IS
nBusiness Corporations Act  (eng. translation) – on IS
nAct governing Private International Law (eng. translation) – on IS
nPrivate Law Reform. Lavický, Hurdík et al., Brno: MU, 2014
nHurdík-Fiala: Contracts. Czech Republic. IEL. Kluwer Int. (upgrade 2020)
http://www.kluwerlawonline.com/index.php?area=Looseleafs
nHurdík-Dobešová: Torts. Czech Republic. IEL. Kluwer Int. 2017 (prepared upgrade 2020)
http://www.kluwerlawonline.com/index.php?area=Looseleafs
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Introduction to the course III
nCompleting literature about former Czech Private Law (not obligatory):
nFormer Czech civil Code (eng.) – on IS or to borrow or to copy
nFormer Czech commercial Code (eng.) – on IS or to borrow or to copy
nHurdík-Fiala: Contracts. Czech Republic. IEL. Kluwer Int. 2009 – upgrade 2011 – on IS
nHurdík-Polčák-Smejkalová: Czech Law in European regulatory Context, Wien-München 2009
nPoplawski-Šramková: Legal sanctions..Brno 2008
n
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Czech civil Law
Introduction..

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Czech civil Law I – from past to future
n
n1811  - Austrian General Civil Code/Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch
n1937 – project of Czechoslovak Civil Code (1939 after occupation of Czech Republic canceled)
n1950  - 1st Czechoslovak Civil Code (141/1950 Sb.-Coll.)
n1964  - „socialist“ Czechoslovak Civil Code (40/1964 Coll.)–was changed by Act 509/1991 Coll.
n1964-1991 – 2 national (Czechoslovak) civil Codes were parallel (side by side) in force: it was -
next to Civil Code - the Code of International Commerce (101/1963 Coll.)
n
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Czech civil Law I – from past to future II (history of legislatory attempts till existing
recodification)
n1990 „federal“ project of new C.c.
n1996 „Zoulík´s project“ of new C.c.
nfrom 2000  -  started project of new Czech Civil Code
n2012 – new Civil Code was accepted in Parliament and signed by the President of Czech Republic
(20.2.2012)
n23. 2. 2012 new C.c. was published in Coll.
nfrom 1.1.2014 new Civil Code in force
nAccepted and published also complementary acts (mainly civil procedure)
n
Textové pole: en
en
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Czech civil Law II – The system of former private Law (by 31.12. 2013)
n1811 – private Law = civil Law
nIn the course of 19th century, and especialy in the 2nd half of the 20th century the Labor Law,
Family Law and Commercial Law as the separated branches of private law were established
nBy 31. 12. 2013, the parts of Czech private Law were:
nCivil law (Civil Code – Act 40/1964 Sb., Author´s Act 121/2000)
nCommercial Law (Commercial Code – Act 513/1991 Sb.
nFamily Law (Family Act – Act 94/1963 Sb.)
nLabour Law (Labour Code – Act 262/2006 Sb.)
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Czech civil Law II – System of new/existing/in force private Law
nRecodification of Czech civil law changed the entire system of Czech private Law:
nThe parts of Civil Code are:
nFamily Law (part two of C.c.),
npartially Labour Law: legal capacity to be the part of labour juridical relations, legal reference
(link) to labour contract in Labour Code,
nmain part of Commercial Law – commercial contract incorp. into the C.c. (excl. Act of commercial
Corporations)
n
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Czech civil Law II – System of new/existing/in force private Law II
n2 essential parts of the system of private law:
nGeneral private law (C.c.)
nSpecial private law (part 2 of C.c. – family; commercial law (pro parte in C.c., pro parte in
special acts); consumers protection law (pro parte in C.c., pro parte in special acts)
nCriterion to distinguish: method („technology“) of legal regulation
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Czech civil Law III – System of new private Law
nThe integral parts of Civil Code are not:
nLabour Law (Act No 262/2006 Coll., Labour Code) : Systemic relation between C.c. and L.c.: general
regulation – special regulation
nThe law of commercial corporations (Act. No 90/2012 Coll.)
nThe international private Law (Act. No 91/2012 Coll.)
n
n
n
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Current situation of Czech civil law I
nThe new Czech Civil Code has been signed by President (20th February 2012)
nThe text of C.C. was published in the Collection of Laws  on 23th March 2012, No 89/2012 Coll.
nNew Czech Civil Code came in force on 1st January 2014
nThe base of recodification of Czech Private Law is composed of 3 legal acts:
nCivil Code (89/2012 Sb.-Coll.)
nAct of commercial Corporations  (90/2012 Coll.)
nInternational private law Act (91/2012 Coll.)
n
n
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Current situation of Czech civil law II
nCode civil No 89/2012 Coll: contents general private law
nSpecial private law:
nLabour Law (Act. No. 262/2006 Coll. – Labour Code)
nCommercial law (esp. Act. No. 90/2012 Coll. – Commercial corporations)
nInternational Private Law (esp. Act. No. 91/2012 Coll.)
n„European“ private law (EU PL in broader sense)
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Published complementary legal acts to C.c.
1)Act 256/2013 Sb./Coll., land registry act
2)Act 257/2013 Sb., changing some acts concerning l.r.a.
3)Act 292/2013 Sb., special civil procedures
3)Act 293/2013 Sb., changing civil procedure order
4)Act 294/2013 Sb., changing bankrupcy act
5)Act 303/2013 Sb., changing some legal acts concerned by the recodification of Private Law
6)Act 304/2013 Sb., concerning legal regulation of public registries of legal and natural persons
n
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Complementary acts prepared/refused
n
n Proposal of legal Act concerning Status of public utility
n refused by Senat 13th September 2013
n subsequently: the term Status of public utility was canceled and „forgotten“
n
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Czech civil law III – New Czech Civil Code
nStructure of the text:
n5 parties:
nPart One : General Part
nPart Two: Family Law
nPart Three: Absolute property Rights (incl.Inheritance)
nPart Four: Relative property Rights (Contract and quasi contract Law; Tort Law; unjust enrichment)
nPart Five: Final, Transitory and Repealing Provisions
n 3.080  paragraphs (ABGB 1502; BGB 2385; Hungarian CC cca 1500; prepared Slovak CC 880..

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The main attributes of conception of new civil Code I
1)Universal Code of private Law – integration of entire private Law
2)C.c. proclaim itself as charter of private fundamental rights – C.c. lost that function -
Constitution; now the goal of C.c. to apply the constitutional rights–horizontal impact of f.r.
3)Based on the doctrine of natural law – applied mainly – juridical conception of human being (§
19) and principles of private law (§ 3). Danger – implementation of principles of natural law leads
to the destruction of grounds of natural law.
4)Based on individual position (the social dimension is missing)
5)Discontinuity/breach of existing development
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The main attributes of new civil Code II
6)Basic institutes family, property (ownership) and contract (responsibility?).
7)Deeper „privatization“:  mainly contract relations (more autonomy, more non-mandatory rules, more
respect to the will – last will/testament..). Contrary – EU law
8)Between tradition and modernization/upgrade of Civil Law regulation, the legislator accepted the
traditional concept (ABGB, Draft of Czechoslovak Civil Code 1937)and refused the future development
9)Denied the function of Code civil as the tool of the control of social relations.

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The main attributes of Czech civil Code III
nMotto: F.v.Zeiller: Code should be „kurz, klar, abstrakt“ (short, clear, abstract) M.T.:„buta
ember“
1)Rule: the same word - the same meaning/the different word – the different meaning
2)Wide range of different terms of the same word meaning (e.g. equity principles)
3)Many terms of very near word meaning (groups of principles)
4)Many problems with functional/working implementation of the term into context (The effect of
judgement on the juridical act: once validity, another time formation of juridical act, another
time effectiveness of j.a. § 33 Al.1, § 46 Al.2, § 50)
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The main attributes of new civil Code IV
n5) The trouble in translation the terms (how to translate Good Faith and Fair Dealing of DCFR to
Czech C.C.?
n6) Attention to details of regulation – C.C. doesn´t work (example: 8 steps to determine a person
who can/shall bury the dead person §114 odst.1, 9 steps to determining the authorized person to
agree with the intervention into the human integrity (§ 97 odst. 1)
n7) Reccurent terms in modificated versions (exam.: principles)
n8) Former, extincted social relations (výměnek- exchange? § 2707n.)
n9) A lot of presumptions and fictions – Civil Law resignes from the aim to be true image of social
life
n10) What is containted in code has the same importance as what there misses (equality before the
law, of opportunities, solidarity, juridical relation as the paradigm of all legal/juridical
constructions..)
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Czech civil law in European frame
n4 levels of civil law:
nNational civil law (former Czech civil law)
nNational civil law  (recodification of C.c.)
nEuropean dimension of civil law de lege lata (existing European „civil“ law) + new projects
(„horizontal“ directive, Common European Sales Law Regulation –CESL, digital market regulation)
nEuropean dimension of civil law de lege ferenda (different projects of europeization of civil law
– Lando commision: PECL, Study group: DCFR, Gandolfi principles, UNIDROIT principles, TORT Law
principles)
nDesire or real possibilities of development ?
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Current development of the Civil law legislation
nThe recodification is in force 6 years: first experiences nThere exist deep different expert
opinions concerning basic concept of private law reform nOne of the strong criticisers – dr. Robert
Pelikán – from 2015 till 2018 the Minister of Justice nLegislative activities of Ministry of
Justice follow the large changes of new C.c.
nMain part of scolars recommend to wait
nMost important change of C.c.: Act No 460/2016 Sb.(Coll.)
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