Cross-border Enforcement in the EU: Mutual Trust versus Fair Trial? Towards Principles of European Civil Procedure

The key question in this contribution is whether further harmonisation of civil procedure in the European Union is required as a consequence of the policy aim to fully abolish the exequatur, most notably within the context of the Brussels I Regulation. Where cross-border litigation is traditionally resolved by private international law instruments, the abolition of the requirement of the exequatur as a new standard for cross-border enforcement in the EU necessitates a deliberation on harmonisation of certain elements of national civil procedure. The abolition of exequatur underlies the premise of mutual trust. However, without clear EU rules as to what constitutes a fair trial, mutual trust may be little more than a hollow phrase. This contribution addresses the current policy and regulatory framework regarding cross-border enforcement of judgments and the concepts of mutual trust and fair trial, and deliberates the type of harmonised rules that are required to facilitate and legitimise the abolition of exequatur in order to enhance cross-border litigation.