With EU law in hand, we repeatedly establish that free competition and freedom of movement are an important part of EU law. We have conducted countless cases on this. This also applies to a Swedish company that sued the Ministry of Taxation and wished to be represented by its Swedish lawyer as well, in cooperation with Sønderby Legal.
In 2025, the District Court ruled that the Swedish lawyer could not appear together with Sønderby Legal.
Sønderby Legal applied to the Appeals Permission Board for leave to appeal the decision. The High Court of Western Denmark overturned the decision, so that our client may be represented by both its Swedish lawyer and Sønderby Legal.
The High Court’s decision follows the applicable rules on freedom of movement for legal services, and the High Court based its decision on the fact that, as stated, the Swedish lawyer practises as a lawyer in Sweden. If he documents this to the Court, he is, pursuant to the executive order, entitled to appear on behalf of the client in question before the District Court.
This additional case, on top of an ongoing tax case, has of course placed unnecessary pressure on the client. With the High Court’s decision, similar time-consuming obstacles can be avoided going forward. In any event, renewed attention has been drawn to how important freedom of movement is within the EU in the area of legal services—also into Denmark.
Sønderby Legal represents companies in other Member States with the assistance of local lawyers, just as we assist lawyers in other countries before the Court of Justice of the European Union. We also represent foreign companies in Denmark. For this reason, we have also for a number of years been a member of the worldwide network Lawyers Associated Worldwide (LAW), and the partner responsible for cooperation, Anders Stoltenberg, states on the occasion of the High Court’s ruling:
“The High Court’s ruling underscores, first, that the freedom to provide services also applies to lawyers and, second, that when a client in the EU wishes to be represented by both their regular lawyer from their home country and a lawyer in the country where the case is being conducted, this is the client’s own decision. It is usually a significant advantage for the client to have their own lawyer with them from their home country, and our membership of LAW ensures us direct access to experienced and competent colleagues all over the world.”
