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Bank guarantees issued in connection with construction contracts sometimes contain ambiguous wording and do not state clearly enough the purpose for which they were issued (e.g. advance payment or performance bond). Under Austrian law, if the wording of the guarantee is not clear, the intention of the parties must also

In construction contracts, both an advance payment guarantee and a performance bond in the form of a bank guarantee are often agreed, which the contractor must provide. This distinction is particularly important if the employer makes unlawful use of the bank guarantee. A performance bond ensures that the work is

Under certain circumstances, a contracting party may be released from its obligation to perform if the performance of the service has become unaffordable and unreasonable in an unforeseeable manner. Generally, fixed-term contractual relationships may be terminated with immediate effect for good cause, such as impossibility of performance, before the expiry

In a much anticipated judgement in Slovak Republic v. Achmea B.V. (C-284/16), the Court of Justice of the European Union (‘CJEU’) ruled that the arbitration clause contained in the Netherlands-Slovakia BIT (the ‘BIT’) has an adverse effect on the autonomy of EU law. In the following, the CJEU extended the

Following a judgement of the European Court of Justice (C-209/12), the Austrian Supreme Court (“OGH”) decided in 2015 (7 Ob 107/15h) that an insured can cancel a life insurance contract at any time and for an indefinite period, if the insurer did not inform the insured about his statutory right

If the parties have not made an express choice of law, a contract for the sale of goods shall be governed by the law of the country where the seller has his habitual residence pursuant to Article 4 1. (a) of the EU Regulation No 593/2008 on the law applicable

Yes. Several legal provisions provide for a person’s obligation to provide accounting information. For example, if someone has been commissioned to carry out a transaction for another person, that person is obliged under section 1012 of the General Civil Code (ABGB) to render an account to his principal upon request.

On 25 May 2018, the Regulation (EU) No 2016/679 (hereinafter, the “EU-Regulation”] on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data entered into force in the EU. The EU Regulation is directly applicable in Austria. Additionally, Austria

The capital contribution of a company with limited liability (“GmbH”) must amount to EUR 35,000, whereby at least EUR 17,500 must be paid in cash. However, there is also the possibility of making use of the so-called foundation privilege (“Gründungsprivilegierung”). The use of the founding privilege means: In addition to

Yes. Pursuant to the bilateral treaty between UK and Austria, which is in force since 1962, certain judgements in civil and commercial matters given by a “superior court” (for definition see further below) in Austria or the UK shall be recognised and enforced in the territory of the respective other