Facts
In the context of debt collection proceedings for tax debts, the Canton of Zurich and the municipality of G. initiated enforcement proceedings against S. The payment order was served at S.'s address in A. After filing an objection, S. changed their domicile. The creditors then requested the definitive lifting of the enforcement proceedings from the District Court of Uster, but the court declined its jurisdiction on the grounds that the court of the initial place of enforcement remained competent despite the change of the debtor's domicile. The Federal Tribunal ultimately upheld the appeal and remanded the case to the Uster court to rule on the request for lifting of the enforcement.Considerations
According to the case law of the Federal Tribunal, when the debtor has transferred their domicile since the notification of the payment order and the creditor has certain knowledge of this, the request for lifting of the enforcement must be addressed to the court of the debtor's new domicile. Indeed, the ordinary forum of the enforcement follows the debtor's domicile, except in the cases provided for in Art. 53 DEBA where the place of enforcement remains fixed at the initial domicile.
The revision of the DEBA in 1994/97 did not call this case law into question. Art. 84(1) DEBA, which provides that the court of the place of enforcement shall rule on the request for lifting, must be…