The Brussels I - Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001

As of 1st March 2003, the Brussels I- Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 of 22nd December 2001 on Jurisdiction and the Recognition and Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters (Judgment Regulation) has become the cornerstone of the European civil procedural law. The Regulation is directly applicable in all Member States; it forms the residual instrument for cross-border civil procedures in the European Union. The report provides a comprehensive analysis of the application of the Judgment Regulation in the Member States set on interviews, statistics and practical research in the files of the national courts. The conclusion ist not that a fundamental amendment of the Regulation is called for, but rather suggestions are made for improvements, especially with regard to the general function of the Regulation as the residual instrument of European Procedural Law. The Report helps both practitioners and scholars to a greater understanding of the impact that the Judgment Regulation has had on the procedural practice in the European Member States.