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Establishment 1. A European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters ("the Network") is hereby established among the Member States. 2. In this Decision, the term "Member State" shall mean Member States with the exception of Denmark.
Composition 1. The Network shall be composed of: (a) contact points designated by the Member States, in accordance with paragraph 2; (b) central bodies and central authorities provided for in Community instruments, instruments of international law to which the Member States are parties or rules of domestic law in the area of judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters; (c) the liaison magistrates to whom Joint Action 96/277/JAI of 22 April 1996 concerning a framework for the exchange of liaison magistrates to improve judicial cooperation between the Member States of the European Union(7) applies, where they have responsibilities in cooperation in civil and commercial matters; (d) any other appropriate judicial or administrative authority with responsibilities for judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters whose membership of the Network is considered to be useful by the Member State to which it belongs. 2. Each Member State shall designate a contact point. Each Member State may, however, designate a limited number of other contact points if they consider this necessary on the basis of the existence of separate legal systems, the domestic distribution of jurisdiction, the tasks to be entrusted to the contact points or in order to associate judicial bodies that frequently deal with cross-border litigation directly with the activities of the contact points. Where a Member State designates several contact points, it shall ensure that appropriate coordination mechanisms apply between them. 3. The Member States shall identify the authorities mentioned at points (b) and (c) of paragraph 1. 4. The Member States shall designate the authorities mentioned at point (d) of paragraph 1. 5. The Member States shall notify the Commission, in accordance with Article 20, of the names and full addresses of the authorities referred to in paragraph 1, specifying: (a) the communication facilities available to them; (b) their knowledge of languages; and (c) where appropriate, their specific functions in the Network.
Tasks and activities of the Network 1. The Network shall be responsible for: (a) facilitating judicial cooperation between the Member States in civil and commercial matters, including devising, progressively establishing and updating an information system for the members of the Network; (b) devising, progressively establishing and updating an information system that is accessible to the public. 2. Without prejudice to other Community or international instruments relating to judicial cooperation in civil or commercial matters, the Network shall develop its activities for the following purposes in particular: (a) the smooth operation of procedures having a cross-border impact and the facilitation of requests for judicial cooperation between the Member States, in particular where no Community or international instrument is applicable; (b) the effective and practical application of Community instruments or conventions in force between two or more Member States; (c) the establishment and maintenance of an information system for the public on judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters in the European Union, relevant Community and international instruments and the domestic law of the Member States, with particular reference to access to justice.
Modus operandi of the Network The Network shall accomplish its tasks in particular by the following means: 1. it shall facilitate appropriate contacts between the authorities of the Member States mentioned in Article 2(1) for the accomplishment of the tasks provided for by Article 3; 2. it shall organise periodic meetings of the contact points and of the members of the Network in accordance with the rules laid down in Title II; 3. it shall draw up and keep updated the information on judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters and the legal systems of the Member States referred to in Title III, in accordance with the rules laid down in that Title.
Contact points 1. The contact points shall be at the disposal of the authorities referred to in Article 2(1)(b) to (d) for the accomplishment of the tasks provided for by Article 3. The contact points shall also be at the disposal of the local judicial authorities in their own Member State for the same purposes, in accordance with rules to be determined by each Member State. 2. In particular, the contact points shall: (a) supply the other contact points, the authorities mentioned in Article 2(1)(b) to (d) and the local judicial authorities in their own Member State with all the information needed for sound judicial cooperation between the Member States in accordance with Article 3, in order to assist them in preparing operable requests for judicial cooperation and in establishing the most appropriate direct contacts; (b) seek solutions to difficulties arising on the occasion of a request for judicial cooperation, without prejudice to paragraph 4 of this Article and to Article 6; (c) facilitate coordination of the processing of requests for judicial cooperation in the relevant Member State, in particular where several requests from the judicial authorities in that Member State fall to be executed in another Member State; (d) collaborate in the organisation of, and participate in, the meetings referred to in Article 9; (e) assist with the preparation and updating of the information referred to in Title III, and in particular with the information system for the public, in accordance with the rules laid down in that Title. 3. Where a contact point receives a request for information from another member of the Network to which it is unable to respond, it shall forward it to the contact point or the member of the Network which is best able to respond to it. The contact point shall remain available for any such assistance as may be useful for subsequent contacts. 4. In areas where Community or international instruments governing judicial cooperation already provide for the designation of authorities responsible for facilitating judicial cooperation, contact points shall address requesters to such authorities.
Relevant authorities for the purposes of Community or international instruments relating to judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters 1. The involvement of relevant authorities provided for by Community or international instruments relating to judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters in the Network shall be without prejudice to the powers conferred on them by the instrument providing for their designation. Contacts within the Network shall be without prejudice to regular or occasional contacts between these authorities. 2. In each Member State the authorities provided for by Community or international instruments relating to judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters and the contact points of the Network shall engage in regular exchanges of views and contacts to ensure that their respective experience is disseminated as widely as possible. 3. The contact points of the Network shall be at the disposal of the authorities provided for by Community or international instruments relating to judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters and shall assist them in all practicable ways.
Language knowledge of the contact points To facilitate the practical operation of the Network, each Member State shall ensure that the contact points have adequate knowledge of an official language of the institutions of the European Community other than their own, given that they need to be able to communicate with the contact points in other Member States. Member States shall facilitate and encourage specialised language training for contact point staff and promote exchanges of staff between contact points in the Member States.
Communication facilities The contact points shall use the most appropriate technological facilities in order to reply as efficiently and as swiftly as possible to requests made to them. TITLE II MEETINGS WITHIN THE NETWORK
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Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.