On 8 September 2021, the District Court of The Hague ruled on the consequences of late entry of the summons into the central register for class actions.[1] The summons of Stichting Nationaal Comite Tegen Verplichte Mondkapjes was only entered into the register more than two weeks after being issued. The writ, too, was only submitted with the court registry more than two weeks later. As a result, the period of two days prescribed in Article 1018c(2) was not complied with, resulting in these acts taking place after the deadline. The District Court found that the prescribed entry in the register was intended to inform third parties wishing to initiate proceedings as soon as possible of the action brought. As follows from Article 1018d DCCP, the time limit for bringing the same action is three months and commences after the entry of the summons in the register. Based on this premise, third parties were not prejudiced by the circumstance that the entry in the register was not made within two days, but more than two weeks after the summons was issued. The District Court also considers the tardy submission of the writ to the court registry to be nothing more than an administrative omission, without prejudicing any (potential) parties to the proceedings. Consequently, a late entry in the register or late submission to the court registry need not lead to the Stichting’s claims being inadmissible.

[1] District Court of The Hague, 8 September 2021, C/09/616983.