On Thursday 23 November, the European Parliament approved the provisional interinstitutional agreement reached on 28 June (see EUROPE 13213/16) on the last two texts of the ‘modernisation of justice’ package, aimed at facilitating and speeding up cross-border judicial procedures in the EU. These were adopted by a large majority: the Regulation with 551 votes in favour, five against and six abstentions, and the Directive with 555 votes in favour, five against and four abstentions.
This legislation allows the use of digital tools such as videoconferencing, electronic exchange of documents and digital payment of fees, which should reduce the costs and time taken by proceedings.
In a statement issued after the vote, MEPs Marina Kaljurand (S&D, Estonian) and Emil Radev (EPP, Bulgarian), co-rapporteurs for the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) and the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) respectively, stressed the importance of these measures in improving access to justice. Ms Kaljurand highlighted the increased efficiency and security of communication between judicial authorities, offering citizens faster access to justice. Mr Radev stressed the need to strengthen judicial cooperation in cross-border cases, thereby facilitating citizens’ access to justice, notably via videoconferencing.
During the debate, the Vice-President of the Commission responsible for Democracy and Demography, Dubravka Šuica, expressed her satisfaction with the agreement reached, highlighting the adoption of implementing acts to establish a decentralised IT system.
The Commission approves the compulsory use of the digital communication channel for judicial authorities and its voluntary nature for citizens, as well as the compromise on the use of videoconferencing in civil, commercial and criminal cases.
While a majority of MEPs felt that this was a key step towards achieving the digital transformation of European judicial cooperation, Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield (Greens/EFA, French) expressed reservations, pointing in particular to the possible impact on the fairness of criminal proceedings and the rights of suspects or accused persons, as well as unequal access to digitalisation for certain populations.
The French MEP called for careful use of digital tools and to guarantee access to justice for all when implementing new legislation.
These texts also aim to ensure effective judicial cooperation between the Member States in all circumstances, including situations of force majeure such as the Covid-19 pandemic. They seek to eliminate the disparities between Member States in terms of digitalisation.
See the regulations adopted: https://aeur.eu/f/9px (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)