The judgment given in cases of summary procedure lacks res judicata status, so that the parties can subsequently refer the entire matter of their legal relations back by way of ordinary declaratory proceedings; and also what has been the object of summary proceedings, namely the creditor’s right to recover possession of the property sold or leased.
Judgment for the claimant or the defendant given in the Court of First Instance can be appealed to the the Provincial Court though the amount involved does not exceed 3,000 euros, since these are oral proceedings by reason of the subject matter. However, the CPA will declare that judgments for the claimant cannot be appealed when the defendant has failed to appear at the pre-trial hearing or at the full hearing, and seeks to base his defence, in one or other grounds that are not covered by the rules that regulating these proceedings.
In relation to the enforcement of judgments given in such proceedings, when the party against whom the judgment is made fails to comply with it on a voluntary basis, it is necessary to draw a distinction between cases in which the ownership has been transferred ¬– hire purchase agreements for personal property ¬- and others where ownership in relation to the property subject to the legal relationship remains with the claimant – financial leasing, leasing of personalty and retention of title agreements.
In the first case, the judgment is for breach of contract, and contains a monetary penalty, which can only be satisfied with the goods that were the the subject of the transaction. As a result, the debt must be settled, so that the goods will be sold at auction, thereby satisfying with the price obtained the judgment creditor’s debt, or if the judgment creditor is to be paid directly, by depositing in court the amount obtained in favor of the debtor if the value of the goods exceeds the debt in question.
In contrast, in the second group of proceedings, the judgment is not monetary, but consists of the termination of the contract and the return of the property, then it is the enforcement of a non-monetary obligation to deliver certain, specific things, without the need for debt settlement or procedures to affect payment, that are procedural steps that are specific to the enforcement of monetary judgments