It is enough to make your blood boil: when someone owes you money, or you are caught up in a…

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http://www.euronews.com/2013/10/28/don-t-get-angry-file-a-claim
It is enough to make your blood boil: when someone owes you money, or you are caught up in a dispute over a product or service. But have you considered all the legal options, including one that is designed to be easy and cheap, and where you do not have to have a lawyer?

Many people do not know it, but numerous countries in Europe have what is known as a small claims procedure, for disputes involving limited amounts ranging from 2,000 to 10,000 euros. There is also a European small claims procedure for cross-border disputes, and there are plans to make that even simpler.

In a country like Hungary, tens of thousands of people make use of the small claims process every year. But in fact it is not just for consumers, businesses can also benefit from it. And in these tough financial times, this could be particularly interesting for small companies chasing up unpaid bills.

Right On travelled to a wine company, 150 kilometres south of Budapest. The owner knows only too well what it means for a company when money owed is not paid. After a bad experience some years ago, this family business was forced to get tough on how it deals with customers, some of whom are outside Hungary.

“We issued an invoice to a buyer and he didn’t pay,” said the winemaker Mihaly Endre Fekete. “He disappeared for a while, and it seemed likely he would never pay for the order. So we spent a lot of time finding the middle man who originally put us in touch, and he forced the buyer to pay, but it was a huge problem at the time.

“Ever since we had this experience we demand the money upfront, so the buyer pays before the wine leaves the vineyard. When the customer buys and we get paid, that’s the ultimate moment, it’s why we do what we do. And when it becomes uncertain if this moment will arrive, it really wears you down.”

At the moment in Hungary there are less than 100 cases of cross-border small claims every year. Officials say the procedure is not that well known, and people have other options they can use. We spoke to a judge who says from his experience there is great demand for a quick delivery of judgements.

“This is true for private individuals and small companies alike: most of them cannot afford not to have at their disposal even a small amount of money for many months, let alone years,” Supreme Court judge Andras Osztovits told Euronews. “The member states and the European Union have to provide quick and effective legal instruments for their citizens and their companies in this legal area.”

There is a lot of work to be done in raising awareness about the small claims process, which experts say could increasingly move towards application forms being filled in online. And part of the push towards giving citizens more of a chance to achieve justice in monetary disputes is a planned reform of the European procedures.

For example, how small is small? Brussels has been reviewing whether or not the 2,000 euro limit on cross-border claims should be substantially raised. And that is not all.

Right On’s Seamus Kearney reported: “To simply even further the small claims process, and to encourage more people to use it, several issues have been reexamined: for example, whether the application fee is too high; what documents should be provided; and whether more guidance is needed in filling in the forms.”

Proposals are due to be announced soon, and it is hoped they could also inspire similar changes to national procedures. But even if a judge rules in our favour, actually recovering the money that is owed is not that easy; and more expense and legal action might be required.

Matyas Kapa, a lawyer specialised in civil procedures, told Euronews: “If people have a claim they tend to think that by getting a court judgement the problem will be solved. But in fact they have to think ahead to enforcement problems.

“Because having a judgement doesn’t necessarily mean they will get their money back, enforcement can raise a lot of problems too. There can be two kinds of serious problems concerning a claim: either a debtor does not want to pay, or cannot pay.”

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After two months of closed classrooms, Italian primary, middle and secondary school students return to the classrooms. But 50% of older student will still have to rely on distance learning.

READ MORE : https://www.euronews.com/2021/01/06/italy-s-schools-set-to-reopen-as-ngos-highlight-risks-of-remote-learning

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In this edition of Business Planet we’re in the Spanish city of Seville. Getting financial backing…

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http://www.euronews.com/2013/11/29/get-bigger-go-public-smes-launching-on-the-stock-exchange
In this edition of Business Planet we’re in the Spanish city of Seville. Getting financial backing for new projects is not always an easy task for most of Europe’s 20 million SMEs, particularly for those seeking substantial capital investment. However, there is a potentially effective solution – list your company on the stock market.

Carbures Europe is a Spanish success story. In recent months this company specialising in carbon fibres and composite materials has become a world leader in its field in engineering, manufacturing and production systems.

It has just won a prize for ‘most internationally-minded newcomer’ in a competition for small and medium businesses run by the European Commission, leading European stock exchanges and public companies group, EuropeanIsseurs.

Since its stock market debut in March last year, the firm has raised 22 million euros and has grown spectacularly.

Rafael Contreras CEO of Carbures Europe said: “Before launching on the market there were 53 of us. Today we’ve a staff of 583. Our turnover was 10 million euros, now it’s 70 million.

Going public enabled this enterprise to access funds which it needed to develop extensively a double strategy of internationalisation and diversification.

The impact has been dramatic,says Contreras: We have 9 plants around the world; east and west coast in the US, in China and in Europe. Being on the stock market also expanded our technology into different sectors; automotive, aviation, railways and civil engineering.”

So, the stock market is potentially a great opportunity for development. But it is important to be aware of the benefits and other considerations.

These include handing over some control to shareholders, but there are other financial and human implications involved in going public. A SME must regularly disclose information about its operational activities, financial situation and business strategy.

Juan Juárez, the company’s chief financial officer says: “The advantages are ongoing access to capital, better exploitation of the company’s potential, more liquidity, a higher profile, and more credibility.”

If you need major capital investment to develop, and you believe this idea works for your business model, just be aware it requires a lot of preparation. So get expert advice before taking the first step.

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http://www.euronews.com/ As the Scottish debate whether or not changes to the law might allow Jedis to perform legal marriage ceremonies, in San Francisco a group of Star Wars fans are offering training in Light Sabre warfare.

Alain Block, the instructor at the Golden Gate Knights, said: “It’s like an initiation. When a person gets their light sabre, suddenly you’re part of this other group of people that are a little more in touch with the secrets of the universe, I don’t know.”

Julio Reyes, a student in the class, said: “At first they giggle, because they think it’s a little silly. Then they’re like, actually that’s kind of cool. Then they start asking more questions.”

And if it all gets too much, the same organisation also offers meditation – to release the dark side, of course.

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You can use as many drones as you want, but you can’t hack the opponent’s.…
READ MORE : https://www.euronews.com/2019/03/19/drones-fight-in-the-air-at-dutch-event

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