Collective redress and jurisdiction in Europe

Opinion piece

The Directive on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers of 25 November 2020 does not address jurisdiction for representative actions. Therefore, the Brussels I bis Regulation continues to apply to most cases of collective actions in Europe. The contribution explains the jurisdictional framework of this Regulation with respect to collective redress, discusses the problems resulting from this, and finally makes a few policy recommendations.

1. Introduction

As is generally known, jurisdiction has been in the focus of the EU's policies in the field of civil procedure since their beginnings, that is, since the Brussels Convention of 1968.2 Most of the EU's legislation on civil procedure relates to jurisdiction (and, on this basis, to the recognition and enforcement of decisions); and the vast majority of CJEU decisions on civil procedure deal with jurisdictional issues. At the same...

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Opinion piece

1. Introduction

2. The Status Quo

3. Jurisdiction and the Representative Actions Directive

3.1.  The Lex Lata

3.2. Shortcomings of the Lex Lata

3.3. A Few Policy Recommendations