Families, businesses and individuals living and working
across Britain and EU Member States will be given certainty to
resolve disputes in a clear and sensible way under proposals to
be put forward by the UK Government tomorrow.
The future partnership paper on civil judicial cooperation
will make clear the Government’s determination to agree new
arrangements for resolving cross-border legal disputes after we
leave the EU. The paper will cover plans for handling
consumer disputes as well as those of businesses and
investors.
These could relate to issues such as a small business that
has been left out of pocket by a supplier based in another EU
country, a consumer who wants to sue a business in another
country for a defective product they have purchased online, or a
person who needs to settle divorce, child custody or child
maintenance issues with a family member who is living in a
different EU country.
It will make clear that agreeing a system for future
cooperation on civil justice matters is crucial for EU citizens
living in the UK; UK citizens living in the EU and for the tens
of thousands of businesses that buy, sell and invest across
borders.
The Government is expected to reveal proposals for a new
reciprocal framework that will be based on a commitment
to:
-
build on the existing foundation of cooperation and
respect for the rule of law;
-
continue to collaborate at bilateral, regional and
multilateral levels;
-
develop our relationship over time as our societies and
laws develop.
A UK Government source said:
“Close cooperation in this area isn’t just in the interest
of the UK citizens living in the EU, it’s in the interest of the
3.2 million EU citizens living here in Britain.
“For example, with more and more families living across
borders, we need to make absolutely sure that if and when
problems arise, they can be reassured that cross-border laws will
apply to them in a fair and sensible way.
“By setting out a very clear position on this, we hope that
we will be able to work with the Commission to agree a reasoned
approach that works for families here in Britain and across the
European Union.”
The paper will help to bring clarity to those involved in
such disputes about which country’s courts will hear a case,
which country’s law will be used to resolve it and that a
judgment obtained in one country can be recognised and enforced
in another.
At present, the UK is part of the EU’s civil judicial
cooperation system, meaning, for example, that families living in
different parts of the European Union have had a clear set of
rules to manage cross-border disputes.
This has provided them with certainty about how different
laws apply to them and how their rights are safeguarded across
borders, in the event of domestic and personal disputes and the
UK and EU will need to agree a new approach.
