Over the years, a number of regulations were adopted at EU level in an attempt to facilitate and simplify access to justice in cross-border litigation. Despite the various actions undertaken by the European legislator to establish a uniform procedural framework with regard to certain types of cross-border claims, numerous differences continue to exist. The recent efforts to digitalize cross-border procedures through the e-Codex project in order to allow an electronic filing of European uniform procedures claims between Member States have raised awareness as to the complexity and the impact of national procedural rules on the application of the European uniform procedures. Empirical data on the service of documents rules applicable in the European Order for Payments claims as well as domestic procedures used for equivalent purposes was collected in 16 EU jurisdictions. This paper investigates the way the implementation and coordination between the national service of documents rules and the service standards set by the Regulation impact on the application of the European Order for Payment and, subsequently, on the parties' access to justice. To conclude, the paper focuses on the possible solutions and actions that could mitigate the difficulties encountered in the present legal framework.

Zwanzig Jahre nach der Verabschiedung des Amsterdamer Vertrags über die justizielle Zusammenarbeit in Zivilsachen wurden vom europäischen Gesetzgeber zahlreiche Instrumente des EU-Zivilprozessrechts entwickelt, die heute in der nationalen Rechtsprechung fest verankert sind. Diese Instrumente haben einen grenzüberschreitenden Raum der Rechtssicherheit geschaffen, dem Bürgerinnen und Bürger sowie und Unternehmen vertrauen können. Das vorliegende Buch fragt nach den "best practices" gemeinsamer Regeln und Praktiken. Inspiriert von der Verschiebung des Schwerpunkts von der Schaffung neuer Rechtsvorschriften hin zu einer Konzentration auf die konkrete Umsetzung, bietet der Band einen Überblick über einen einheitlichen europäischen Rechtsraum und seinen Regeln.

Cross-Border Litigation in Central Europe EU Private International Law Before National Courts As a consequence of the ever-increasing intercourse within the enlarged and diverse European Union (EU), a growing number of businesses, consumers, and families rely on EU private international law instruments to seek justice in cross-border disputes. This invaluable reference book offers an in-depth understanding of this process in Central Europe and is the first to provide a comprehensive and analytical overview of the judicial practice in the region and to make this case law accessible in English. Presenting the results of a major EU-funded project (CEPIL), the book offers an insight into the reality of EU private international law and cross-border litigation in Central Europe: it provides a comprehensive and exhaustive presentation of the case law in 10 Central European Member States (Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia); it covers all fields of EU private international law (general civil and commercial, insolvency, family and succession matters); it inquires whether EU private international law functions optimally in the Central European Member States in order to secure a Europe of law and justice; it examines whether EU private international law instruments are applied in a correct and uniform manner and whether national courts deal appropriately with disputes having a cross-border element; it analyzes whether the current legal and institutional architecture is susceptible of securing legal certainty and an effective remedy for cross-border litigants. This important practical resource helps businesses, consumers, families and legal counsels engaged in cross-border mobility to gain access to essential information and analysis as to the application and interpretation of EU private international law in Central Europe. The book is also highly valuable to academics and researchers specializing in private international law by presenting the research findings of the CEPIL project.

Scores of talented and dedicated people serve the forensic science community, performing vitally important work. However, they are often constrained by lack of adequate resources, sound policies, and national support. It is clear that change and advancements, both systematic and scientific, are needed in a number of forensic science disciplines to ensure the reliability of work, establish enforceable standards, and promote best practices with consistent application. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward provides a detailed plan for addressing these needs and suggests the creation of a new government entity, the National Institute of Forensic Science, to establish and enforce standards within the forensic science community. The benefits of improving and regulating the forensic science disciplines are clear: assisting law enforcement officials, enhancing homeland security, and reducing the risk of wrongful conviction and exoneration. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States gives a full account of what is needed to advance the forensic science disciplines, including upgrading of systems and organizational structures, better training, widespread adoption of uniform and enforceable best practices, and mandatory certification and accreditation programs. While this book provides an essential call-to-action for congress and policy makers, it also serves as a vital tool for law enforcement agencies, criminal prosecutors and attorneys, and forensic science educators.

This book examines the introduction of smart technologies into public administrations and the organizational issues caused by these implementations, and the potential of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to rationalize and improve government, transform governance and organizational issues, and address economic, social, and environmental challenges. Cities are increasingly using new technologies in the delivery of public sector services and in the improvement of government transparency, business-led urban development, and urban sustainability. The book will examine specific smart projects that cities are embracing to improve transparency, efficiency, sustainability, mobility, and whether all cities are prepared to implement smart technologies and the incentives for promoting implementation. This focus on the smart technologies applied to public sector entities will be of interest to academics, researchers, policy-makers, public managers, international organizations and technical experts involved in and responsible for the governance, development and design of Smart Cities.

Offers an account of ODR for consumers in the EU context, presenting a comprehensive investigation of the development of ODR for business to consumer disputes within the EU. This book examines the role of both the European legislator with the Mediation Directive and the English judiciary in encouraging the use of mediation.

In the context of the objectives of assuring access to justice and of seeking the creation of the area of freedom, security and justice in the EU, the European small claims procedure has the key aim of simplifying and speeding up litigation across borders within the EU in claims of low value and thus of reducing the costs of such litigation between the Member States (see Article 1 and recitals 1, 7, 8 and 36). To achieve this the procedure places emphasis on the need for relative simplicity of the proceedings, notably that the procedure should largely be written. Furthermore the role of the court is strengthened significantly as regards managing the progress of the case and in determining the issues between the parties in relation to the claim and the potential for parties to make use of the procedure without the need for, and attendant expense of, legal advice. The procedure is available to be used not only by individuals or groups of consumers, for whom it may be particularly appropriate, but also by small businesses confronted with cross-border disputes as part of their affairs. The aim for the procedure to be speedy is to be achieved by the observance of the specific time limits set in respect of various stages of the procedure. Restriction of costs is also an important aim and the duty is placed on the court to ensure that the costs awarded are not disproportionate to the value of the claim. One of the main continuing concerns voiced over the functioning of Civil Justice systems, notably in relation to the possibility for ordinary citizens to access the courts and seek redress for claims quickly and without having to spend large sums of money on legal advice, has been in the area of claims of low value especially those made by individuals against businesses or other individuals where the time, effort and cost involved can often be grossly disproportionate to the value of the claim. To address this, many legal systems in the Member States of the EU have devised special procedures characterised by efforts to simplify and to reduce the expense and accelerate the resolution of such claims by individuals or small businesses. In many of these procedures a number of common features are found such as restriction of costs awarded, absence of lawyers, simplification of rules of evidence and generally the placing on the courts of more responsibility to manage cases and to achieve speedy resolution by decision or agreement of the parties. -- EU Bookshop.