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The Courts as a Final Resort?: Some Comparisons between the Legal Cultures of the Netherlands and the Federal Republic of Germany

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 May 2009

E. Blankenburg  and
J.R.A. Verwoerd
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Summary

The amount of litigation has grown considerably since 1970 in both the Netherlands and West Germany. This is causing concern on both sides of the border. However, the level of litigation is vastly different, the Dutch avoiding court procedures much more easily than the Germans in similar problem situations. A comparison of the ‘legal cultures’ of the Netherlands and the adjacent West German Land of North-Rhine-Westphalia reveals that the difference holds true for most types of court cases. The German courts are called upon to decide far more cases on criminal, civil as well as administrative conflicts, than are the Dutch courts. Not only for this reason, but also because the Dutch courts take a more pragmatic approach to cases, the need for judges is six times higher in North-Rhine-Westphalia. It would be all too easy to see a direct connection between the subsidies granted to the clients of the legal services and the overloading of the court system. The data, however, shows that the contrary holds true. Given the overall availability of legal services the emphasis could be said to lie on litigation in the German system and on advice and assistance in the Dutch system. The Dutch do not make use of the courts so often because they have the alternative of an extensive network of noncommercial advice and assistance agencies and tribunals (in particular for landlord - and - tenant and employment cases). In West Germany, on the other hand, there is less sifting of cases in the early stages of conflict and procedure, owing to the advocates monopoly on legal advice services and the underdeveloped system of legal aid.

Type
Articles
Information
Netherlands International Law Review , Volume 35 , Issue 1 , May 1988 , pp. 7 - 28
Copyright
Copyright © T.M.C. Asser Press 1988

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References

1. For a more thorough discussion of the concept, see Blankenburg, E., ‘Indikatorenvergleich der Rechtskulturen in der Bundesrepublik und den Niederlanden’, Zeitschrift für Rechtssoziologie, no. 2 (1985) pp. 255–273Google Scholar.

2. Zweigert, K. and Kötz, H., Einführung in die Rechtsvergleichung auf dem Gebiet des Privatrechts (1971)Google Scholar chapter 10 (their characterizations of ‘Styles’ are not included in the 1984 second print, but they are maintained in their argument. Cf., also, the critique of von Benda-Beckmann, K., ‘Einige Bemerkungen über die Beziehung zwischen Rechtssoziologie und Rechtsvergleichung’, 78 Zeitschrift für vergleichende Rechtswissenschaften (1979) p. 51 et seqGoogle Scholar.

3. David, R., Les grands systèmes du droit contemporains (1964)Google Scholar.

4. Figures from Galanter, M., ‘Reading the Landscape of Disputes’, UCLA Law Review (10 1983) p. 52Google Scholar. The data relate to 1973–84.

5. Sentences in civil, criminal and administrative cases, not including judicial orders.

6. Verwoerd, J.R.A. and van Teeffelen, P.A.J.T., ‘De rechter aan het werk: overbelast of onderbenut?’, Ministry of Justice, Research and Documentation Centre (1985) No. 54Google Scholar.

7. Except, of course, for those claims too small to be covered by the policy or likely to endanger the no-claims bonus.

8. The problem is that there are no North-Rhine-Westphalian police statistics on minor traffic offences. On the basis of the figures for Bavaria (1984 Annual Statistics, Central Fines Office, Bavarian Police Authority) we estimate the number of cases reaching the courts in North-Rhine-Westphalia as follows: 1,120,000 minor traffic offences, 88% of which are settled out of court (mostly by payment) and 12% brought before the Amtsgericht.

9. Of the 65,000 or so normal court cases about 20,000 were appeals against the summary penalty and 45,000 brought directly by the Public Prosecutions Department.

10. Report of the Committee on Simplified Settlements of Minor Traffic Offences (Mulder Committee), 1985.

11. Blankenburg's personal study of the working statistics of the Munich and North-Rhine-Westphalia Public Prosecutions Departments.

12. Including applications under Art. 1639 (w) of the Civil Code.

13. Unless special procedures such as that under Art. 1639 (w) of the Civil Code are invoked: such procedures have been increasingly popular in recent years (1982: almost 3,000 out of 10,000).

14. Estimates of the proportion of defended cases handled by the Local Employment Offices vary, averaging 40%, i.e., about 59,000 in 1982. See Hoekema, J. in Blankenburg, E. et al. , Hoe goed werkt het ontslagrecht? (1985) p. 39Google Scholar.

15. Sources used: CBS survey of 10,765 respondents extrapolated to a population of 11,297,000 (aged 15+), URS, ASTRA and court statistics. An article has been written on the CBS survey by Klijn, A. and Huls, F.W.M., ‘De vraag naar rechtshulp 1979–1982’, CBS Monthly Statistics, no. 5 (1984)Google Scholar.

16. Blankenburg, E. and Fiedler, J., Die Rechtsschutzversicherungen und der steigende Geschäftsanfall der Gerichte (1981)Google Scholar.

17. Vos, G.J., ‘Nederlandse advocaten en verzekeraars – partners?’, Advocatenblad, no. 64 (1984) p. 370 et seqGoogle Scholar.

18. Except in criminal, divorce, social security and administrative cases.

19. Blankenburg, E. and Reifner, V., Rechtsberatung (1982)Google Scholar.

20. West Berlin poll (1979):