EU

By the time of reading, the Council will have adopted this regulation on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and cooperation in matters relating to maintenance obligations. The regulation will ensure that a maintenance creditor is able easily to obtain in one Member State a decision which will be automatically enforceable in another Member State, with no further formalities. The UK has formally applied to opt-in. 

The European Parliament is supportive of the Commission’s 2008 proposal to extend the European Judicial Network, so as to, inter alia, open it up to the legal profession. (“EJN” http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/index_en.htm) 

The Council is expected, any time now, to adopt this proposal for a Framework decision (originally put forward in 2003) creating the EEW, by which Member States will be able quickly to secure the transmission of existing evidence (objects, documents, data) in criminal proceedings, from another Member State. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/file.jsp?id=238262 

In mid-December, the European Parliament is set to formally approve, with some amendments, the Commission’s plans as set out in its 2008 Communication on e-justice - the term used to cover a wide range of internet-based EU initiatives in the justice field, from video conferencing, to the availability of EU procedural documents in electronic form. 

See: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/oeil/file.jsp?id=5637102