Cross-border Collective Redress and the Jurisdictional Regime: Horizontal vs Sectoral Approach

In the context of private enforcement, collective redress is assuming an important role at European Union level as a procedural means to protect collective interests. Legislative developments show a twofold approach: a horizontal framework with common principles has been proposed, though with non-binding nature, and sector-specific legislation has introduced collective redress procedures mainly for consumers. However, also in other fields it shall be a viable procedural remedy, such as in the employment context. Rarely, the Court of Justice addressed collective proceedings and private international law issues, mainly related to the jurisdictional regime. Cross-border situations are not specifically addressed in the relevant Regulations, neither among the common principles or in the specific legislation. An exception is the reference to the extension of the application of the existing Regulations included in the Proposal on representative actions for consumer protection. The horizontal and sectoral approaches, including the applicability of the existing private international law rules, particularly on jurisdiction, are thus debated.