Diary of a Croatian Lawsuit: From the Sublime to the Surreal
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Loading... - Nathan Anderson
- 30 May 2022
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One of the things that I have learned about being sued in Croatia is that it is very important to be in control of your calendar. This is true both for the lawyers and the defendant. Without proper control of the calendar, lawyers can double book appointments (not once, but twice) leading to a delay in the hearing. This is something we observed in a previous court report where I uncovered a solution to speed up the Croatian judicial system - we simply need to crowdfund for more legal secretaries to organise the lawyers. Read more in Diary of a Croatian Lawsuit: 50 Lawyers, No Secretary, No Hearing.
For the defendant, diaries are also important. I am a notoriously disorganised person, and planning ahead is not one of my strengths. One thing I am learning about the Croatian legal process is that nobody is in a hurry. The two delayed hearings from the double-booked prosecution lawyer, for example, put back the first hearing by over 6 months. I am not necessarily in a hurry either, although there is the small issue of the rolling interest on the lawsuit. This stands at 8% a year, so for every year that the case goes on (and we are at 2 years almost already), add 8,000 kuna to the 100,000 kuna claimed from the two lawsuits. If I lose. So with a double-booked prosecution lawyer delaying proceedings by 6 months, that is an additional potential 2,000 kuna to pay on one of the two lawsuits.
My problem with planning in the future is that the last hearing in November threw up a date in May the following year (another 2,000 kuna). As I never have anything planned that far ahead, I didn't immediately take a note of the exact day - it would come with the court notes later.
Thursday May 5, at midday in the Zagreb Municipal Court, the documentation told me.
This hearing would see the first witnesses giving evidence on an article that I did not write on a portal that I do not own which quoted me. As I understand it, there was no request for retraction, and the article is still live in its original format today. Given that the lawsuit is for 50,000 kuna for defamation, and seemingly no effort has been made to remove or alter the original article, I find this a little strange.
Both sides were invited to provide witnesses to give evidence in the hearing. My other lawsuit, for a meme featuring the official Croatian tourist board slogan, had myself and the Director of the Croatian National Tourist Board on the witness stand talking about uhljebs, how many Facebook followers I had, what I was doing before I moved to Croatia 20 years ago, and a host of other things. It was my first time on the witness stand in a court of law, and it was a rather strange experience, as you can read in Diary of a Croatian Lawsuit: HTZ Director Kristjan Stanicic Talks Uhljebs.
Two witnesses were proposed from the prosection, both employees of the national tourist board, and three for the defence, including the journalist who wrote the article (whom I have never met). I was surprised to learn that both prosecution witnesses were called to appear on May 5, but only one for the defence. My lawyer informed me that this was quite normal, as 5 witnesses were too much for one hearing, and the other witnesses would be called at a later date. As it turns out, the remaining two witnesses have been called to appear in 6 months' time, in November (another 2,000 kuna...).
About a month before the hearing, I started to get organised and realised to my horror that I was the one who was double booked. A conference I was involved in organising in Dubrovnik was taking place on May 5-7, with the opening welcome party on May 4. What an inconvenience (and additional expense) to fly to Dubrovnik for the opening, then fly back early the next morning to Zagreb, and then back to Dubrovnik in the afternoon, thereby missing the first day of the conference entirely.
And then it got really strange...
One of the sponsors of the event came forward a couple of weeks before the conference, to sponsor the opening night (and very nice it was too) - none other than the Croatian National Tourist Board. Not only that, but one of the two people due to give evidence against me the following day in court in Zagreb was representing the tourist board at the event in Dubrovnik I was involved in organising. Sponsor your event by night, give evidence against you by day.
A strange feeling indeed, and so the magical world of Croatia works. I wondered if we would share a cab to the airport, and then perhaps one to the Zagreb courtroom. I really didn't want to miss the first day of the conference, and in the end my lawyer Vanja Juric told me to stay in Dubrovnik. I would not be called to speak and nothing would be decided that day. She would handle all.
And so to the opening night of the event in Dubrovnik where, as sponsors, the national tourist board soon-to-be prosecution witness (and a very nice lady) welcomed all to the Sponza Palace, shaking hands with those as they entered.
"Hello Paul," she said, with the accompanying handshake, which was reciprocated. And so a pleasant evening ensued.
And so to the following day in Zagreb, which took place with me in the conference in Dubrovnik. Read More...
