The Finnish Presidency of the Council of the EU has launched a discussion on future EU developments in the area of civil justice. In a discussion paper dated 7 October, which EUROPE has received a copy of, it puts a series of questions to the Member States and invites them to reply in writing before 25 October.
Under its Presidency of the Council of the EU, Romania had already launched a broader reflection on judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters (see EUROPE 12234/14). The Presidency intends to build on this momentum with a view to guiding a possible discussion on this subject at the December Justice Council.
In particular, the Presidency invites Member States to reflect on how several tools, such as the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters or the e-Justice portal, could be developed in order to strengthen coherent implementation of legislation and cooperation on a practical level.
It also asks them to identify areas where EU civil justice action could support the promotion of sustainable development.
The document also includes an update on multilateralism. "There seemed to be a strong overall consensus among ministers on supporting multilateralism in the civil justice area", the Presidency said.
In practice, rather than legislating on a given subject matter not yet covered by EU law, it could be more efficient to have all Member States, or the EU when possible under the terms of each treaty, ratify a given international agreement, it explains. The added value in this approach would be that all Member States would within a reasonable time-frame start to apply the same legal framework both in their mutual relations and in relations with third countries party to the agreement.
Finally, the document invites Member States to vote for or against new legislative measures in the field of civil justice. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)