Europarättslig tidskrift nr 3 2026
ISSN (ONLINE): 2002-3561
LEDARARTIKEL
ARTIKLAR
Open Access
Shaping Model Rules for Collective Redress
This article examines the development of the Model Rules of Civil Procedure Law within the ELI/UNIDROIT project and explains its international significance. The Model Rules were adopted in 2020 and include specific proposals for collective redress instruments. The article outlines the organisation of the project, the methodology of the working groups, the comparative law background in general, and discusses key provisions of the proposal regarding collective redress such as legal standing, opt-in v. opt-out mechanisms and third-party funding of collective actions. The article also explores the objectives and the political background of the whole project and of collective redress in particular. It also attempts to answer the question of whether the Model Rules can be considered a successful instrument today.
Open Access
Consumer Collective Redress: What can be Learned from the Experience of Portugal?
This article addresses the progress in consumer collective redress that has been achieved in Portugal, considering also parallel examples from the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The article describes the status quo in these jurisdictions comparing it to the situation in Sweden. It then sets out the parameters which made progress possible, and suggests adopting some of them in countries that are considering reforms in their collective redress systems, or where, like in Sweden, collective redress mechanisms have been less successful.
Open Access
Implementation of the Representative Actions Directive in France: Confirming the Myths of the French Exception
This chapter examines the implementation of Directive (EU) 2020/1828 on representative actions in France, arguing that French collective redress has long presented more myth than reality. Since the Loi Hamon in 2014, France has constructed a fragmented, sector-specific regime characterised by restrictive standing, mandatory opt-in participation, and lack of financial sustainability. Original empirical data across over a decade of litigation confirms structural weaknesses and the extent of this failure. The article then assesses whether the 2025 reform overcomes France’s “peculiarity”. While the new regime introduces meaningful improvements, the article concludes that the enactment of the sanction civile pour faute lucrative, a deterrent mechanism aiming at neutralising illicit profits, that goes beyond the Directive’s express prohibition on punitive damages, confirms rather than dispels the French exception. France’s transposition has produced a model that remains genuinely peculiar among Member States, reflecting ongoing resistance to ordinary collective litigation. The analysis places French exceptionalism within the context of broader tensions between national procedural autonomy and EU harmonisation, contributing to comparative discussion in collective redress.
Open Access
Det misslyckade grupptalaninstitutet – något om rättegångskostnader, tvistfinansiering och oväntade kräkemojis
Artikeln behandlar det svenska grupptalaninstitutet och de två huvudsakliga skälen till att det i princip inte förs några grupprättegångar i Sverige, nämligen att det är svårt att finansiera grupptalan och att det är svårt att skapa omfattande grupper (dvs. grupper med ett större antal medlemmar). Därvid förs vissa förslag fram avseende hur situationen skulle kunna förbättras, bl.a. genom förändringar i rättegångskostnadsregleringen på så sätt att risken för omfattande kostnadsansvar för käranden minskar, samtidigt som förutsebarheten avseende kostnadsexponeringen ökar. Vidare konstateras att det bör införas möjlighet att på ett förprocessuellt stadie från potentiella svaranden få tillgång till uppgifter om potentiella gruppmedlemmar. Förslagen syftar i huvudsak till att minska motpartskostnadsexponeringen, skapa större grupper, större krav och större intresse från professionella tvistfinansiärer, vilka är de enda aktörer som i artikeln identifierats som faktiska möjliggörare av fler och mer omfattande grupprättegångar.
Open Access
Digital Rights Private Enforcement and Collective Settlements: The Representative Actions Directive Assessed
Digital rights violations increasingly take a systemic character, from large-scale breaches of personal data to harms caused by autonomous AI systems. In private enforcement they are typically addressed through collective redress mechanisms, which often end in amicable settlements instead of judicial adjudication. While such settlements offer efficiency and reduced transaction costs, their governance in cases involving fundamental rights has received insufficient scholarly attention. This article examines the procedural design and judicial oversight of collective Court settlements in digital rights disputes, with particular focus on the tension between efficiency and the normative force of fundamental rights. It argues that robust procedural safeguards are essential to prevent settlements from degenerating into unprincipled bargaining detached from considerations of justice and accountability. Drawing on comparative analysis of United States (US) class action settlement practice—in particular fairness review mechanisms—this article identifies key principles and design features that could inform the governance of collective digital rights settlements in European Union (EU) law. Its contribution lies in transposing lessons from a mature collective redress system to the emerging EU framework, offering concrete criteria for balancing procedural efficiency with substantive legitimacy in the adjudication of fundamental digital rights.
Open Access
Diffuse, Fragmented and Collective Interests in Swedish Environmental and Climate Civil Litigation
This article examines how Swedish procedural law accommodates collective environmental and climate claims and how European law has influenced access to justice. It analyzes two recent Swedish cases: the PFAS Case concerning contaminated drinking water and the first Climate Case, in which the Swedish state was sued for violating inter alia the European Convention on Human Rights by failing to take adequate measures to prevent climate change. It is argued that, although Swedish law formally provides several avenues for collective litigation, the practical significance of group proceedings have remained limited. Instead, European legal developments have strengthened the role of environmental organizations as representatives of collective environmental and climate interests. The Swedish Supreme Court’s handling of the Climate Case reflects this trend by favoring organizational standing over individual group actions. The PFAS litigation illustrates that even successful environmental lawsuits face significant procedural obstacles. The paper concludes that, despite expanded opportunities for collective action, uncertainty regarding standing and litigation risks continues to limit effective access to justice, indicating a need for further procedural reform.
DOKUMENTATION
Open Access
Europadomstolens domar – maj–juli 2026
Under andra kvartalet av 2026 kom avgöranden rörande konventionsrättsliga aspekter i återkommande situationer såsom Rysslands olagliga agerande på Krim (se Bazhenov m.fl. mot Ryssland och Ukraina, dom 16.07.2026), Turkiets oproportionerliga hantering av personer som haft samröre med det som regimen numera klassar som terroristorganisationer (se Yasak mot Turkiet, dom 05.05.2026, stor kammare) och där Polens rättsstatskris hanteras (se Sobczyńska m.fl. mot Polen, dom 21.05.2026).
Andra frågeställningar som fortsätter prägla Europadomstolens praxis och där domstolen markerat är institutionell sexism, polisvåld och journalistikens roll som allmänhetens vakthund. I målet Ubeda m.fl. mot Italien (dom 02.07.2026) riktade domstolen skarp kritik mot de italienska myndigheternas passivitet vid anmälningar om våld i nära relation. Domstolen fördömde även åklagarens djupt sexistiska och stereotypa motiveringar under processen. I fallet S.T. mot Tjeckien (dom 16.07.2026) finns paralleller till George Floyd-fallet i USA: En romsk man dog efter att ha hållits i bukläge under ett polisingripande. Europadomstolen markerade för pressfriheten i Tožičková mot Tjeckien (dom 28.05.2026) där domstolen fann att gripandet av en journalist under en miljödemonstration stred mot artikel 10.
