The reply should contain information on whether the defendant the summons or opposes the summons. Also the grounds for opposing the summons and proof thereof should be included in the reply. 

The plaint is rejected with a court decision concerning the areas where the plaintiff has waivered the plaint, or the plaint is clearly without grounds. 

A plaint that has made its way into legal proceedings is either taken up for a decision right after the session or alternatively the court decision is given at a later stage, at a time announced by the court, from the court’s office. 

If one is dissatisfied with a court decision, it must be notified to the district court within a week of the court decision. An appeal of the district court’s decision can be made to the court of appeal within 30 days of the court decision. In most cases permission for continued consideration must be granted for the court of appeal to hear the case.

An appeal of the court of appeal’s decision can be made to the Supreme Court. Permission for continued consideration is however needed for a case to be heard by the Supreme Court. 

The parties can together or separately petition for conciliation to commence. The written, freely formulated petition should be directed to the district court. The parties of the conciliation, their contact information and a brief description of the disagreement should be included in the petition. The parties can also petition that a matter pending before a court be moved to conciliation. Also the judge can suggest conciliation. 

A court judge is the arbitrator. If the case is moved to conciliation, the arbitrator is a different judge than the one who heard the matter in court. The task of the arbitrator is to help the parties to find a solution, which both parties can accept, to their dispute. The conciliation serves the needs of the parties and a reached conciliation is not directly based on applying the law. 

Conciliation is voluntary. Because of this the commencement of conciliation requires that all parties of the dispute agree to it. Furthermore, conciliation requires that the matter is suitable for conciliation and that conciliation is expedient, considering the demands of the parties. The court makes the decision on whether conciliation is to be commenced. 

For the conciliation to be successful, it is important that the parties have an authentic will for conciliation. The arbitrator’s task is not to solve the dispute, but to rather help the parties find a solution to their differences. The arbitrator is neutral and non-partial in regard to both the parties and the case at hand. 

The conciliation session is begun as soon as possible. The conciliation advances primarily with discussions and negotiations with all parties present. If need be, the arbitrator can discuss with the parties also separately.  

Conciliation is confidential. This entails that the arbitrator does not share contents of the conciliation to outsiders, and especially not to the judge hearing the case in court sessions. No protocol is written on the conciliation and the held discussions are not recorded in any other way either. 

If the parties come to an understanding during the conciliation process, the arbitrator can confirm the conciliation agreement upon their request. In that case it becomes an enforceable decision. Based on this decision, e.g. an agreed performance, compensation for damages or maintenance can be collected in recovery proceedings. In case the conciliation is not confirmed, it is a customary contract binding its parties. 

 

The conciliation comes to its end, if a party no longer wants to continue it. Also the arbitrator can end the conciliation, if he or she notices a lack of conditions for conciliation. 

If the case under conciliation is pending before a court, the hearing of the case is continued at court. In the legal proceedings a different judge hears the case than the one who was the arbitrator. In the legal proceedings the parties cannot refer to facts that the other party stated during the conciliation process in an attempt to come to an understanding.