Out-Law News 2 min. read
21 May 2007, 10:21 am
Editor's note, 03/08/2007: The Rome II Regulation (10-page / 95KB PDF) is now published.
The European Parliament and the Council of Ministers have been in dispute since 2003 over rules that would govern what court should hear disputes where no contract is in place. Typical disputes are traffic accidents, product liability, environmental damage and defamation.
Privacy and defamation have been the focus of disputes between the bodies. British MEP Diana Wallis proposed that the rules, called the Rome II Regulations, deal with privacy and defamation law, but while the Parliament backed her plan the Council of Ministers opposed it. The Regulations need the approval of both bodies in order to come into force.
Wallis wanted the Regulations to stipulate that defamation cases should be heard in the country of publication, not the place where the subject of the case lived. The Council had opposed any inclusion of privacy and defamation in the Regulations at all.
The two bodies have now reached an agreement on how to proceed with the Regulations but defamation has been sidelined as an issue. The issue has been excluded from the agreement altogether but will form part of a "review" to be conducted at a later date.
The European Commission has been asked to produce a study on the defamation issue by the end of 2008.
"At second reading, MEPs had approved an amendment to regulate the violation of privacy by print or audiovisual media," said a European Parliament statement. "According to that text, the law applicable in case of defamation by media would have been the one of the country to which the publication or broadcasting service is principally directed or, if this is not apparent, the country in which editorial control is exercised. However, national governments strongly opposed the Parliament’s position and the Conciliation Committee agreed to leave this matter to be discussed in the future under the review clause."
Rome II is not meant to harmonise laws across member states, but it is meant to ensure that decisions on which court to fight in are made on a consistent basis so that 'forum shopping' for the most advantageous legal regime is prevented.
"I am glad that the two legislative bodies have at last agreed on this instrument, which, by its very nature, potentially concerns all the citizens and firms of the Union", said Franco Frattini, European Commissioner for justice and home affairs. "This is a fundamental instrument both for the completion of the European area of justice and for the proper functioning of the internal market.
"It is unacceptable that, as regards compensation for damage caused to persons and property, the settlement of a dispute varies considerably depending on which court it is referred to," said Frattini.
The compromise text was hammered out at a special Conciliatory Committee meeting, which featured equal numbers of representatives of the Parliament and the Council. The Regulations will now be voted on by the two bodies and can only come into force once passed by both.
Unlike Directives, EU Regulations do not have to be made law in member states before they apply. If passed, the Rome II Regulations will be applicable in courts across Europe from the beginning of 2009.