Case law

  • Case Details
    • National ID: XI ZR 193/04
    • Member State: Germany
    • Common Name:link
    • Decision type: Other
    • Decision date: 25/04/2006
    • Court: BGH (Supreme court)
    • Subject:
    • Plaintiff:
    • Defendant:
    • Keywords:
  • Directive Articles
    Doorstep Selling Directive, Article 1, 1.
  • Headnote
    1. If a loan agreement revoked under § 1(1) HWiG (Haustürwiderrufsgesetz Doorstep Withdrawal Act) and the financed acquisition of a share in a fund constitute connected contracts in the terms of § 9(1) VerbrKrG (Verbraucherkreditgesetz – Consumer Credit Act), the intention of the statutory provisions on the withdrawal require that the lender is not entitled to any claims for payment after the right of withdrawal has been exerted. In this case, the unwinding has to be effectuated between the lender and the other party of the financed transaction (confirmation of BGHZ 133, 254 ff.).
    2. An economic unit in the terms of § 9(1)(2) VerbrKrG is irrefutably presumed, if the loan agreement has not been concluded on the autonomous initiative of the borrower who applies for the financing of his investment, but because the representative of the distributor of the investment scheme has – together with the documents on the investment – presented the customer with an application form of the financing bank, which had previously agreed toward the distributor of the investment scheme to finance it (confirmation of BGHZ 156, p. 46 et seqq. and judgment of the senate of 23 September 2003 – XI ZR 135/02, WM 2003, p. 2232 et seqq.).
    3. Even if the financed transaction is notarised, a liberation of the borrower from his obligation to repay the loan under § 3 HWiG can be commanded due to the fact that the contracts were connected.
    4. The borrower can only claim the repayment of the loan instalments from the lender, but not of any fund allotments which had been transferred to him.
    5. A loan contract void due to the omitted statement of a total amount becomes valid under § 6(2)(1) VerbrKrG if the borrower has not directly received the value of the loan, but if it has – as agreed – been disbursed to a fiduciary for the purpose of the acquisition of a share in a fund. This even applies if the loan agreement and the acquisition of the share constitute connected contracts in the terms of § 9(1) VerbrKrG (deviation from BGHZ 159, p. 294 ff., Federal Court of Justice of 14 June 2004 – II ZR 407/02, WM 2004, p. 1536 et seqq. and of 21 March 2005 – II ZR 411/02, WM 2005, 843 ff.).
  • Facts
    The 11th senate of the Federal Court of Justice (civil branch) has in several judgments given opinion on legal questions concerning the acquisition of shares in closed real estate funds. Some of these questions had been disputed between the 11th and the 2nd senate of the FCJ. By now, the senates have broadly agreed on a common position on these matters. In particular, the 11th senate had deviated from the judicature of 2nd senate on the following points:
  • Legal issue
    If the acquisition of a share in a real estate fund and the loan agreement used to finance it have been connected contracts in the terms of § 9(1) VerbrKrG, and if the borrower has been induced to acquire the share by false statements, he can invoke claims against the fund partnership as an objection under § 9(3) VerbrKrG against the financing bank’s claim for repayment of the loan. He cannot, however, invoke claims against the founding partners, fund initiators, leading operators, managers or prospect publishers. Even if not the borrower, but the fund partnership has registered a land charge to secure the loan, the contract constitutes a real estate loan contract in the terms of § 3(2) no. 2 VerbrKrG. Thus, the contracts cannot be connected in the terms of the law. A loan contract void due to the omitted statement of a total amount becomes valid under § 6(2)(1) VerbrKrG, if the loan value is directly disbursed to a fiduciary. This also applies if the contracts are connected. Whether or not the contracts are connected and whether or not an apparent authority under §§ 171, 172 BGB can be assumed to the advantage of the financing bank, if the fiduciary’s authorisation is void due to a breach of the Rechtsberatungsgesetz (Act on Legal Counsel), are two different questions.
  • Decision

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