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Unfair and illegal terms of loan agreements used by banks

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Article by George Kazoleas,  Lawyer LL.M. (Banking & Capitalmarkets Law) It is well known that loan agreements contain terms and conditions that disturb the balance between the parties to the detriment of the borrower and are therefore legally and judicially  diagnosed as contrary to law. Despite this, most banks insist on including them in their new contracts, refusing to comply with court rulings even by the European Court of Justice. Especially, foreign currency loan agreements (such as the Swiss franc) contain many unfair and opaque terms. Particularly: The Bank had to inform the potential borrower of the foreign exchange risk and explain in detail the relevant clauses before concluding the loan. It is very common, that the loan agreement does not mention anything about this risk, nor does it appear that the borrower has been effectively and properly informed by a competent bank official. According to Cypriot and European legislation and case law, the loan agreement must set o…
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Swiss franc loans and borrowers’ rights in the light of 4 important judgments of the European Court of Justice

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By George Kazoleas, Lawyer LL.M. The EU Court of Justice has issued important decisions in recent years on the issue of bank foreign currency loans, essentially in Swiss francs, which has created significant case law useful for defending the interests of borrowers who have been “trapped” by credit institutions in contracts with abusive currency risk clauses resulting in undue overchargings.
In summing up this case-law, the European Court of Justice has reached the following main conclusions:
1.The loan agreement must set out in a transparent manner the exact functioning of the foreign currency conversion mechanism and the exchange rate clause so that the consumer can assess the financial consequences of this mechanism.
2.The borrower must be clearly informed by the bank that, by concluding a loan agreement in a foreign currency, he / she is exposed to a certain foreign exchange risk that he / she may find it difficult to cope with in the event of a devaluation of the currency against …
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E-Trials & Virtual Courtrooms: A possible solution to Court Lockdown

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Editor: Anastasios Tsanakas, Lawyer Numerous Jurisdictions, including the Republic of Cyprus have decided as part of their measures for the prevention of Covid 19 transmission, the suspension of Court operations. Nevertheless and for obvious reasons there can be no universal lockdown to the administration of justice. A possible solution to the imposed restrictions that inhibit justice accessibility is the development and establishment of “e-trials”. In the UK, an entire trial is being conducted over Skype in a legal first that lawyers say could be a model way to ensure court business continues during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Judge, is asked to decide whether it is in the best interests of a 70 years old man that suffered a major stroke in 2016 to have the clinically assisted nutrition and hydration he receives through a tube, withdrawn. The patient’s daughter and GP disagree over his treatment and the local clinical commissioning group has asked the court to determine the course to take…
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