Towards more EFfective enFORcemenT of claimS in civil and commercial matters within the EU (EFFORTS)
ProjectThe EFFORTS Project aims at better enforcement of claims through better procedures, case-handling and cooperation in cross-border disputes. It tackles the Brussels Ia Regulation and the Regulations on the European Enforcement Order, the European Small Claims Procedure, the European Payment Order and the European Account Preservation Order and their implementation in national procedural law in 7 Member States: Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg. The interaction of said EU and national rules signifies a major weakness of the system, making it difficult for practitioners, and even more for consumers and businesses, to be aware of the mere existence and practical functioning of the available mechanisms.
Embracing a practice driven approach, a consortium of experts in international procedural law will analyse the existing legislation and case-law (in 14 national reports), promote the exchange of practices among operators (at 7 seminars) and collect good practices (in a dedicated report). Building on this, the consortium will: pursue clarity by means of 7 Practice Guides on cross-border recovery of claims in the targeted MSs; contribute to the improvement of existing EU and national legislation by drafting Policy recommendations for national and EU policymakers (8); set up instruments for an enhanced cooperation in the enforcement of claims: i.e. 2 permanent fora for discussion and cooperation (the EFFORTS Network and a Working Group on the digitalization of enforcement procedures) which
will contribute to validate the final Project outcomes collected in a Report on digitalization and in the Final Study.
The Project will involve over 100 lawyers, 40 judges, 10 enforcement agents, 15 EU and national policymakers, 20 inhouse counsellors, members of 7 consumers associations, and 60 academics. Its deliverables will benefit operators and end-users from all MSs, increasing their awareness and trust in the tools provided by the EFFORTS Regulations.
Embracing a practice driven approach, a consortium of experts in international procedural law will analyse the existing legislation and case-law (in 14 national reports), promote the exchange of practices among operators (at 7 seminars) and collect good practices (in a dedicated report). Building on this, the consortium will: pursue clarity by means of 7 Practice Guides on cross-border recovery of claims in the targeted MSs; contribute to the improvement of existing EU and national legislation by drafting Policy recommendations for national and EU policymakers (8); set up instruments for an enhanced cooperation in the enforcement of claims: i.e. 2 permanent fora for discussion and cooperation (the EFFORTS Network and a Working Group on the digitalization of enforcement procedures) which
will contribute to validate the final Project outcomes collected in a Report on digitalization and in the Final Study.
The Project will involve over 100 lawyers, 40 judges, 10 enforcement agents, 15 EU and national policymakers, 20 inhouse counsellors, members of 7 consumers associations, and 60 academics. Its deliverables will benefit operators and end-users from all MSs, increasing their awareness and trust in the tools provided by the EFFORTS Regulations.