On Wednesday 13 February, MEPs approved by 559 votes to 26, with 9 abstentions, the draft report prepared by Emil Radev (EPP, Bulgaria) on the proposal for a regulation on cooperation between Member States’ jurisdictions in the taking of evidence in civil and commercial matters (see EUROPE 12031).
The European Parliament’s text - adopted without modification relative to the vote in the parliamentary committee - provides that communications and document exchanges should in principle be carried out electronically via a decentralised computer system, which should be based on the e-Codex system and managed by the EU agency responsible for the operational management of large-scale information systems, euLISA.
It provides a broad interpretation of the term “jurisdiction”. According to MEPs, it should cover not only the courts, but also other competent authorities under national law, such as law enforcement authorities or notaries in certain Member States and for certain situations.
The Commission's proposal also clarified that digital evidence collected in one Member State cannot be deprived of its evidentiary status in another Member State solely because of its digital nature.
In its text, Parliament maintained this provision, but specified that this principle should be applied without prejudice to the determination, in accordance with national law, of the level of quality and the value of the evidence, regardless of its digital or non-digital nature.
One of the Commission's objectives was also to promote the hearing of witnesses by videoconference. MEPs maintained this possibility and stressed that, where required by the national law of the requesting Member State, the use of videoconferencing or any other remote communication technology should be subject to the consent of the person to be heard.
The text also strengthens the procedural rights of the parties and the protection of personal data. It also provides that any electronic system for taking evidence should ensure the protection of professional secrecy and the confidentiality of communications. Personal data that are not relevant for the processing of a particular case should be deleted immediately. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)