The Commission presents a report on the activities of
the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial
matters.
To recall, the Network was set up by Council Decision
No 2001/470/EC to improve, simplify and expedite effective judicial
cooperation between the Member States in civil and commercial
matters. It started operations on 1 December 2002. In 2009,
Decision No 568/2009/EC modernised the Network's legal framework
and expanded its tasks.
Building on the achievements so far, the Commission
aims at further improving the role and functioning of the
Network as indicated in its Communication of 11 March 2014 on
the
EU Justice Agenda for 2020. This objective was taken forward by
the strategic guidelines of the European Council of 26/27 June 2014
for legislative and operational planning for the coming years
within the area of freedom, security and justice.
The report is based on the findings of a study
commissioned by the Commission in 2014 and comes to the following
conclusions:
Functioning of the Network: the Network has provided substantial support for
efficient judicial cooperation between Member States in civil
and commercial matters and the full participation of its members is
an integral part of the day-to-day implementation of the Union
acquis in civil justice matters. Moreover, the amendments to the
Decision introduced in 2009 have contributed to the Networks
positive development. The report notes the following
developments;
- the Network's membership structure has evolved
during the last few years, mainly due to the integration of
associations of legal professionals and the adoption of new Union
law. The Network is made up of 505 members. The contact points
designated by the Member States play a central role in the
functioning of the Network;
- meetings of the contact points, and meetings of
central authorities have proved to be
essential for the Network to exchange good practices and
experience, identify possible shortcomings and develop a common
understanding on the application of Union instruments. At the same
time, bilateral meetings are organised between case-handlers
and authorities involved under the cooperation mechanisms provided
for in both the Brussels
IIa Regulation and the Regulation
on Maintenance Obligations. The Network has also set up
working groups on specific subject matters which have an
essential supportive function;
- since the beginning of its operations, it has been a
core function of the Network to set up an online information
system for the public on Union instruments, national measures
for their implementation, national law, international instruments
and on relevant case-law by the Court of Justice. On that basis,
the Network today strongly contributes to the further development
of e-Justice. The migration of the Network's website to the
European e-Justice Portal should be finalised in 2016;
- currently, the Network has posted 10 695 pages of
information factsheets on national law, which for the year
2014 generated a total of 359 184 page views. This increased
significantly in 2015 with a total of 2 994 122 page
views
- after the Network made available factsheets on
succession, family mediation, applicable law and maintenance
claims;
- the Network has produced citizens' and
practitioners' guides, aimed at promoting the uniform
application of Union law in civil and commercial matters by courts
and other legal practitioners. These guides are targeted at
citizens or at courts and legal practitioners.
The report notes that the Network has been proved
to work effectively although improvements in its operations can
be made within the existing legal framework. Therefore, the
Commission concludes that there is no need to amend the
Decision.
Possible improvements:
building on initiatives already ongoing, the Commission identifies
seven key points for further action to improve the Network's
functioning:
- in line with the Decision and following best practices
in some Member States, all contact points should be given the
necessary resources and support at national level, in order to
be able to effectively cope with their increasing
tasks;
- building on best practices in a number of Member
States, networks should be established at national level in
all Member States, bringing together national Network members,
ensuring interaction at a national level as well as knowledge
sharing and gathering of information;
- a stronger integration of judges and other
judicial authorities as well as legal professionals in all of the
Networks activities should be ensured;
- synergies with other European networks
pursuing similar aims should be
extended;
- an even greater visibility of the Network
should be achieved, in particular on the basis of the ongoing work,
to enhance its presence, firstly, through a dedicated section in
the European e-Justice Portal, and secondly, on the national
websites of the institutions to which Network members belong.
disseminating information via social media and other communication
channels should also help the Network gain visibility;
- the Network's role in the full ex post
evaluation of existing instruments should be further developed
through the identification and collection of key statistical data
based on national data collection mechanisms;
- the Commission intends to assess the financial and
technical implications of putting in place a tool or adapting
an existing electronic information exchange tool for secure
communication and registration to be used by the contact
points.
The next report will build on the existing findings
and will provide a full evaluation of the impact of the activities
of the Network.