bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Le droit et “le patrimoine moral” de I’humanité
Authors: van Neste F.
Published: April 2022

Zusammenfassung. Das Vermögen einer Person zeigt an: die Gesamtheit aller Güter, die ihr gehören und durch die sie sich bereichern und ihren materiellen Wohlstand sichern kann. Oder, man hat in den letzten Jahren analoge Begriffe verwendet und man hat von “genetischem Vermögen (patrimoine génétique)” oder “kulturellem Vermögen der Menschlichkeit (patrimoine culturel de l’humanité)” gesprochen. Warum benutzt man nicht ein und denselben Terminus, um alle die Fähigkeiten zu bezeichnen, über die ein Mensch verfügt, um sich selbst zu realisieren (wie z.B. frei und unabhängig zu sein) und um die menschliche Qualität zu beschreiben und zu bewahren, die “Menschlichkeit in ihm”? Was beinhaltet dieses geistige (sittliche) Vermögen (“patrimoine moral”) und wie bezieht sich das Recht auf dieses Vermögen? Dies sind die Themen dieses Aufsatzes. Das geistige Vermögen erscheint im Rechtssystem grundsätzlich unter zwei Formen. 1. In vielen Rechtsnormen, die mehr oder weniger Inhalte wie Gerechtigkeit, Verantwortlichkeit, Solidarität oder guten Glauben verkörpern, ist das geistige Vermögen stillschweigend wie “Hefe im juristischen Teig” gegenwärtig. 2. In den Menschenrechtsdeklarationen haben die geistigen Güter wie insbesondere die individuelle Freiheit und das Selbstbestimmungsrecht des Menschen einen eigenen und ausdrücklichen juristischen Status erhalten. Der Beitrag zeichnet den Stellenwert des geistigen Vermögen in der Geschichte nach und untersucht die Auswirkungen auf rechtliche Zusammenhänge. Mit Hilfe der politischen Ideen von P. Ricoeur ended der Beitrag mit einer kurzen Analyse der Dialektik zwischen der Ethik, der Politik und dem Recht.

Abstract. A person’s patrimony can be defined as the totality of goods and interests which belong to him and by which he may increase his wealth or assure his material well-being. However, in recent years, the term has been used by analogy and now covers a person’s “genetic patrimony” or the “human cultural patrimony.” Why not use the same term to signify all the capacities which human beings have for self-realisation as autonomous and free, and to construct and maintain the essentially human quality of “humanity”? What is the content of such a “moral patrimony” and in what ways does the law refer to this patrimony? This is the subject of the present article. The moral patrimony appears in law in essentially two guises: 1. It is to be found in a number of legal rules which more or less embody a sense of justice, of responsibility, of solidarity or of good faith. The moral patrimony is implicitly present as the “yeast in the dough of the law.” 2. In declarations guaranteeing human rights, moral rights concerning individual freedom and self-determination have been accorded a separate and distinct legal status. Using the political ideas of P. Ricoeur, this article concludes with a brief analysis of the dialectic between ethics, politics and law.
Wie gemeinsam ist die Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik? – Zur Ausführung der EG-Regeln für die Übertragung von Milchquoten in England und Wales, Frankreich und Deutschland
Authors: Gehrke Heike
Published: April 2022

Zusammenfassung. Seit 1984 ist der europäische Milchmarkt der sogenannten Milchquotenregelung unterworfen. Von den Erzeugern von Kuhmilch wird eine Zusatzabgabe auf die Mengen Milch oder Milchäquivalent erhoben, die in einem Zwölfmonatszeitraum an die Molkerei geliefert oder direkt an den Verbraucher verkauft werden und eine bestimmte Milchquote überschreiten. Aufgrund ihrer Höhe von zur Zeit 115% des Milchrichtpreises entfaltet die Abgabe eine Prohibitivwirkung.

Der Beitrag behandelt die Ursachen für die Unterschiede, die bei der Ausführung des europäischen Rechts zur Übertragung von Milchquoten in England und Wales, Deutschland und Frankreich auftraten. In England und Wales konnte im Gegensatz zu den anderen beiden Mitgliedstaaten die Entstehung eines Quotenmarktes beobachtet werden.

Ursächlich für die Divergenzen bei der Ausführung des Gemeinschaftsrechts sind nicht in erster Linie die unterschiedlichen Landpachtrechte in den untersuchten Ländern. Vielmehr wurde den Mitgliedstaaten durch die europäischen Milchquotenverordnungen ein erheblicher Gestaltungsspielraum für die Durchführung eingeräumt. In Ausnutzung dieses Spielraumes etablierten England and Wales ein liberales Recht zur Übertragung von Milchquoten, während sich Frankreich für ein restriktives System entschied. Begünstigt wurde diese Entwicklung in England und Wales durch die relativ großzügig gehandhabte Kontrolle durch das Landwirtschaftsministerium, die eine Umgehung der Regeln ermöglichte, sowie nicht zuletzt durch die effektive Milcherzeugungsstruktur.

Die nationalen Regeln über die Rechte des Pächters an der Milchquote weichen erheblich voneinander ab. So werden dem französischen Pächter bei Beendigung des Pachtvertrages weitgehende Rechte bezüglich der Quote eingeräumt, worin sich der ausgepragte Pächterschutz des franzäsischen Landpachtrechts widerspiegelt. In Ermangelung einer Harmonisierung der Landpachtrechte war es unvermeidbar, den Mitgliedstaaten einen weitgehenden Gestaltungsspielraum bei der Regelung des Verhältnisses zwischen Pächter und Verpächter einzuraumen. Die Verpflichtung der Mitgliedstaaten, bei der Durchführung von Gemeinschaftsrecht die Gemeinschaftsgrundrechte zu beachten, vermag zur einheitlichen Anwendung von Verordnungen nach Art. 189 EGV auch bei bestehenden nationalen Spielraumen beizutragen.
Verfahren mit geringem Streitwert vor deutschen Zivilgerichten
Authors: Müller Harald , Gottwald Peter
Published: April 2022

Zusammenfassung. Der Beitrag zeigt auf, in welcher Weise das 1991 neu eingeführte deutsche Bagatellverfahren nach § 495aZPO die Arbeit des Richters am Amtsgericht erleichtert, welche praktischen Schwierigkeiten bestehen und welche Grenzen dem Ermessen des Richters aus rechtsstaatlichen Gfinden gesetzt sind.

Abstract. In 1991 the German legislator introduced by § 495a a special small claim proceeding for local courts to the German Code of Civil Procedures. The paper describes the rule’s impact on court practice and discusses the difficult relationship between a judge’s discretionary powers in handling the new rule and a party’s constitutional rights.

Réumé. Le législateur allemand ayant adopté en 1991 une loi relative aux petits litiges au sens du § 495a du Code de procédure civile, l’auteur montre en quoi ce texte tend à faciliter le travail du juge, reléve les difficult6s pratiques qui subsistent et souligne les limites aux pouvoirs du juge qui résultent des principes de valeur constitutionnelle.
Cour de Cassation, 13 juillet 2001 – Arrêts 278, 279 and 280
Authors: Martín-Casals Miquel , Papachristos A.C. , Sombroek-van Doorm M.P. , Stolker Carel
Published: April 2022

Abstract: Less than one year after its decision on the famous Perruche case (2000.11.17), the Assemblée plénière of the French Supreme Court has again ruled on the question of the damage awards to compensate for the birth of a disabled child due to medical failures. Even if in these three cases the French Supreme Court rejects the appeal against the contested decisions which had refused damage awards, these cases remind, in very clear terms, the damage award principle for child disablement, established by the Perruche case.

In these three cases, gynaecologists committed errors. Most often, they incorrectly performed and misinterpreted ultrasound scans. Thus, they did not inform the mothers of detectable malformations of the foetus (respectively: spina bifida malformation of the spinal column, a child born without his left arm and with a half reduced right arm andimportant malformation of the upper right limb).

In all these cases, the first instance judges recognized physicians’ failures, so that this issue was not discussed at the French Supreme Court. Even if the contested decisions of the first instance judges sentenced the physicians to compensate for the personal damages of the parents related to the birth of a disabled child, they rejected the claims for damage awards to the children themselves (claims that had been filed, in their names, by the parents). The various Courts of Appeal based their judgements on the lack of causal link between medical failures and the disablement of the children. Rejecting the appeals aimed against these Courts of Appeal, the Assemblée plénière has approved their refusal to allow damage awards to the child. But one should not be misled. This does not mean that the Assemblée plénière reconsidered the principle of damage award for the disablement of the child; simply, in these cases, the conditions for allowing damage awards were not satisfied because of the lack of causal link between the disablement of the child and the medical failures.
Jonathan Harris, The Hague Trust Convention. Scope, Application and Preliminary Issues, Oxford – Portland Oregon, Hart Publishing, 2002, 529 pp.
Authors: Traest Michael
Published: April 2022

This book is the first monograph published in England devoted to a detailed analysis of the Hague Convention on the Law Applicable to Trusts and on their Recognition, concluded in The Hague on 1 July 1985. It is divided into two parts. The first one deals with the private international law rules concerning the creation of transnational trusts. This part is also named “Launching the Rocket.” In doing so the author refers to the image of the rocket-launcher and the rocket regularly invoked in relation to transnational trusts. As indicated by the author, the former concerns those preliminary matters necessary for creation of the trust, such as the capacity of the settlor to dispose of his property on trust. The latter governs matters affecting the trust once it has come into existence, such as the role of the trustee, the administration of the trust and the relationship between the trustee and the beneficiary; those matters are essentially covered by the Hague Trust Convention. In using the image of the rocket-launcher and the rocket, it is made clear that the subject-matter dealt with by the Hague Convention does not have to be taken into consideration if the pre-conditions for the formation of a trust are not satisfied. In other words, the rocket is not considered if it is not correctly launched. Indeed, each contracting State bound by the Hague Trust Convention has to apply its own national conflict of law rules to determine whether the rocket was succesfully launched (p 3).
Vassals No More: Feudalism and Post-feudalism in Scotland
Authors: Reid Kenneth G.C.
Published: April 2022

Abstract: At the very time when the feudal system of land tenure was being abolished in France, and elsewhere in Europe, it was enjoying an unexpected revival in Scotland as a means of controlling urban development. Land which was sold under the feudal system could be subjected to permanent conditions, known as “real burdens”, which regulated its future use; and in this way planning control was achieved by a mechanism of private law. Real burdens could (and can) also be used in a non-feudal context, in which case they resemble praedial servitudes. But, unlike servitudes, real burdens can impose affirmative obligations, such as an obligation to construct and maintain a building. Today Scotland is one of the last jurisdictions in the world to have an operational feudal system. That will shortly change. Legislation passed in 2000 abolishes the feudal system with effect from 28 November 2004. At the same time the law of real burdens is reformed and codified. The continued existence, and importance, of real burdens was the greatest obstacle to feudal abolition. For if feudal lords (“superiors”) were to disappear, who was to enforce the burdens? The legislation tackles the difficulty with various improvisations, in some cases reallocating enforcement rights to neighbours (including former superiors), and in others allowing the burdens to lapse altogether. Affirmative burdens will be a permanent legacy of the feudal era, but in other respects its continuing influence on land law is likely to be slight.
Possession et actions possessoires: Belgique, Pays-bas et France. A la recherche d’un ius commune?
Authors: Vuye Hendrik
Published: April 2022

Abstract: The protection of possession forms part of the Ius Commune between Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. This does not come as a surprise, as the armies of Napoleon have imposed on other countries the rules from Articles 23-27 of the old French Code de procédure civile. Nowadays this protection of possession can still be found in the legislation of these three countries, albeit in differing degrees of intensity. Belgium law emphasizes the “policing” function of claims based on possession: he who is disturbed in his possession can ask to be put back into proper possession. This is solely due to the fact that the other party has breached the ban on taking the law in their own hands. In contrast, Dutch law focuses on the actual function: the party in possession is protected against third parties, but not against parties having a “better” right. The French legislator emphasizes the “policing” function, but also takes into consideration the actual function by declining protection against parties from whom the aggrieved party has received the property in question. In fact, this debate is old. Does one have to opt for the protection of the parties having a “better” right, as shown in the action publiciana, or does one have to implement the ban on taking the law in one’s own hands, as done in the interdictions of Roman law?
Stefan Klauer, Das europäische Kollisionsrecht der Verbraucherverträge zwischen Römer EVÜ und EG-Richtlinien, Tübingen, J.C.B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck), 2002, 389p.
Authors: Meeusen Johan
Published: April 2022

Together with a number of other fields of law, consumer law often appears to be a laboratory of private international law. Various policy interests, both at national (substantive) and international level, are at stake and have prompted a creative, policy-oriented approach from the conflicts legislator. A compromise has been sought between the protection of the consumer, substantive policy goal which is to be secured also in international transactions, and traditional conflicts values such as international harmony and legal certainty in cross-border relationships, which both are much easier realized with a neutral and abstract approach. Well-known achievements with regard to international consumer contracts are Article5 of the 1980 Rome Convention on the law applicable to contractual obligations and the provisions in EC directives on consumer protection which shield the consumer from the application of restrictive third country law. Much has already been written on this topic. Still, the book of Stefan Klauer on European conflicts of law regarding consumer protection constitutes a very valuable contribution to the academic debate.
The Regimen of the Railway Rolling Stock Protocol.
Authors: Rosen Howard
Published: April 2022

Abstract: The Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment was agreed and signed in November 2001, together with a Protocol for the aviation sector. In the Final Act of the Convention, states were urged to adopt Protocols for the rail and space sectors, also dedicated to protecting private law security rights of lenders and lessors. The treaty design of a protocol for a specific industry reflects the need to deal with particular industry problems. The urgent world-wide requirement for private investment in rolling stock at attractive rates is driving the industry’s need for security. Rolling stock is constantly crossing jurisdictional boundaries, potentially undermining any pledge or other security interest held by a funder in a financed asset. The Rail Protocol is still a work in progress. After three government experts’ meetings, the basic content is clear, however there is still a need to refine ideas in relation to difficult issues such as bankruptcy, asset identification, scope of the protocol, the ‘public interest’ modifying or restraining creditor rights, as well as transitional problems. As far as possible, pending the diplomatic conference to approve the protocol, these issues should be confronted directly rather than dealt with by opt-ins and opt-outs. Only a unified international law approach to creditor’s security can unlock the exciting potential of the Convention for the rail industry.
Recent case law réArrÃªts rÃ©cents réAktuelle Gerichtsentscheidungen
Authors: van Schaick Bert , Ruda Albert , Østergaard Kim , Sagaert Vincent , Dacoronia Eugenia , Caterina Raffaele , Petz Thomas , Tvarnø Christina , Tamasauskas Andreas , Cairns Walter , Pironon Valérie , Hünert Matthias , Shúilleabháin Máire Ní , Mota Pinto Paulo , MacGregor Laura , Ribot Igualada Jordi , Hahn Anne-Catherine
Published: April 2022

Introduction:

In this section authors from various European countries report the recent case law in their country on the field of private patrimonial law, that is decisions on the law of property, juridical acts, the law of obligations, contract law and prescription. The European Review of Private Law (ERPL) started this section in 2003. The section aims to give our readers an overview of what is happening in the most recent European case law. We have asked the national reporters to report the juridical essence of the decisions given by the highest courts in their country. These national reports are integrated in one general report that arranges the decisions by subject, so that our readers can easily find out whether decisions on their special interest were given in any European country or whether decisions on one subject have been taken in various European countries. In principle, this section does not relate the facts of the decision, nor the personal opinion of the reporter. One can find discussions on the most important decisions of European courts in ERPL’s case note section.

The recent case law section gives overviews of decisions published in periods of four months. The period of January-April is published in the fourth issue, the period from May to August is published in the sixth issue, and the period from September to December is published in the second issue of the next year. In this issue, we publish decisions of high courts taken from September to December 2003. As yet, some decisions can only be found on the internet. Therefore, at the end of this section we have listed web sites where one can find European high court decisions. The Board of Editors of the ERPL wants to thank the national contributors to this report, who worked very hard to have their reports ready in time. Further, the Board considers itself very fortunate that Mr. Ross MacDonald (University of Dundee, Scotland) has been willing to edit the contributions and, by doing so, contribute substantially to the quality of this section.
BGH, 12.12.2000, VI ZR 345/99 JZ 2001, 711 – Zur Verjährung eines Schadensersatzanspruchs bei mehreren Gesamtschuldnern
Authors: van Schaick Bert , Shúilleabháin Máire Ní
Published: April 2022

Abstract: The decision by the BGH was based on the following facts. The plaintiff, born in 1982, claimed material and immaterial damages for the destruction of his milk teeth denture. He maintained that, during the first two years of his life, he had been fed a tea product made by the defendant by way of “permanent suckling”. In doing so, a plastic feeding bottle, which has also been distributed by the defendant and which lacked a proper warning, had been used. In 1985 the mother of the plaintiff learnt from the dentists treating her child that the damage to the milk teeth may have been caused by the consumption of the tea. In 1993 she was informed about the possibility of claiming damages from the tea producer by her health insurance. In 1996 the plaintiff lodged a claim for damages against the defendant and the co-defendants, some of her senior staff members (such as members of the executive board, the authorized officer, and head of departments) whom the plaintiff thought jointly responsible for the development, production and distribution of the tea product causing the damage to his teeth. The defendants raised the objection of limitation of the plaintiff’s claim.

The previous Courts dismissed the claim due to the objection raised by the defendants. However, the plaintiff succeeded with his appeal in respect of the co-defendants. The BGH argued that the requirements for the period of limitation and its commencement have to be verified for each co-defendant separately. If several persons may have caused the damage, the period of limitation starts to run for each of them as from the point in time the aggrieved party has become aware of the respective person causing the damage. It is therefore possible that the period of limitation may start to run, and expire, from different points in time, notwithstanding the fact that the underlying claim is based on the same event and damage. This also holds true in respect of co-defendants being an enterprise on the one hand, and its legal representatives or senior staff on the other hand, who are liable for the enterprise according to Â§31 or Â§831 BGB.
Iwan Davies (ed.), Security Interests in Mobile Equipment, Ashgate, Dartmouth 2002, 548 pp, ISBN 1 84014 792 X
Authors: Milo Michael
Published: April 2022

In 1999 Iwan Davies published a book on retention of title clauses. I warmly welcomed the book since books in English on property law in a comparative context are needed, by academia and practice, yet these are scarce. This scarcity is slowly disappearing; Davies and his Centre for Installment Credit Law at the University of Wales, Swansea, is partially responsible for this positive tendency, since he has once more published a volume on an enormously important subject, the law of proprietary security in personal property in cross-border transactions, entitled: Security Interests in Mobile Equipment. And once again, retention of title reappears. A book is necessarily divided in three parts. The first part deals with domestic law, the second with private international law, and the third with uniform law. I have read the contributions with great pleasure, yet I do have an overall reservation. The last part deals with the most challenging subject: how on earth is it possible to create a uniform law on the basis of the immensely diverging bodies of national mandatory law of proprietary security? The unification has taken shape in a fairly specific area. The economic need for unification or harmonization in the case of security interests in expensive equipment which by its nature continually crosses borders of national jurisdictions is evident. It has led to the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment concluded in Cape Town, in December 2001. This convention and the protocol on Aircraft equipment have been ratified by three and acceded to by one jurisdiction, and have in the meantime (1 April 2004) entered into force. There are unmistakable signs that the United States, Canada, Singapore, Vietnam and Kenya will soon follow.
’Unevenly Formed Contracts’: Ignoring the ’Mirror of Offer and Acceptance’
Authors: Siems Mathias M.
Published: April 2022

According to Article 2:211 of the Principles of European Contract Law, the rules on the formation of a contract apply with appropriate adaptations for contracts which are not concluded through offer and acceptance. How this is to be done, however, is not specified in detail. Furthermore, it is not clear when the conclusion of a contract cannot be divided into offer and acceptance. This article will, therefore, look at these ?unevenly formed contracts?, analysing in which areas of law they can be found, and how the conclusion of these contracts can be ascertained. Since contract law often focuses on the standard model of offer and acceptance, it will also be indicated which parts of contract law might require different applications for ?unevenly formed contracts?.
The Way Forward in European Contract Law
Authors: Staudenmayer Dirk
Published: April 2022

The Commission has gone one step further on its way to a coherent European contract law. The Communication ?European contract law and the revision of the acquis: the way forward? shows this already in its title. The Communication deals in particular with the development of the Common Frame of Reference which will serve as a tool to review and revise the contract?law?relevant EC acquis. In addition, it also develops some parameters for the discussion on future optional instruments in European contract law which the contractual parties can choose as the applicable law for cross?border contracts.
EuGH, 9.9.2003 (Fall Jäger) - Der Bereitschaftsdienst eines Arztes in einem Krankenhaus - Arbeitszeit oder Ruhezeit im Rahmen der Richtlinie 93/104/EG?
Authors: Boonstra Klara , Trambowicz Johanna , Vigneau Christophe
Published: April 2022

The plaintiff, who was working as an assistant?doctor in a hospital, was obliged to be on stand?by for emergency duties. He was running six such duties per month, which were reimbursed partly by compensatory time?off and partly by extra remuneration. Stand?by duties followed the regular duty and amounted to 16 hours on weekdays, 25 hours on Saturdays (8:30am to 9:30am Sunday) and 22 hours and 45 minutes on Sundays (8:30am to 7:17am Monday). The plaintiff spent these hours in the hospital and rendered his services, if called for. During the times he was not needed, he could sleep in a room at the hospital. On average, he was working 49% of the time of the stand?by duty. The plaintiff argued that, in the light of Directive 93/104/EEC the entire time for his on?duty service were to be considered as full?working time in the meaning of the German law on working time. The defendant was of the opinion that, in the light of jurisprudence and the prevailing doctrine, the idle time within the framework of a stand?by duty had to be considered resting, and not working time.

The European Court of Justice was asked by the second instance labour Court to rule on the question whether such stand?by duties are idle time or working time. The ECJ held that such duty?calls are indeed working time, since such work bears the hallmark of the notion of working time in the meaning of Directive 93/104/EEC. It was, inter alia, decisive that the Plaintiff had to stay at a place determined by the employer and that he had to be at the latter?s disposal to render his services immediately if need be.
The Symposium ’Parallel and Conflicting Enforcement of Law’ in Thoresta, Sweden, 18-19 August 2004
Authors: Andersson Torbjörn
Published: April 2022

The symposium, as its title suggests, was about parallel proceedings, or to put it another way, parallel enforcement. The origin of the symposium may be traced back to a research project concerning parallel and conflicting enforcement of law, a project that I have been involved in for some years and which tend to grow constantly. The project has resulted in a number of articles, but the expected monograph is still waiting to be published. Furthermore, some years ago I found out that there is a similar project at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law in London, where research is conducted by Mads Andenäs and Renato Nazzini. Since then, there has been sporadic, but very valuable, cooperation between London and Uppsala in this area.
The Commission Proposal for a Regulation Establishing a European Small Claims Procedure: An Analysis
Authors: Haibach Georg
Published: April 2022

On 15 March 2005 the European Commission adopted a proposal for a Regulation establishing a European Small Claims Procedure. The aim of the proposal is to simplify, speed up and reduce the costs of litigation concerning small claims by establishing a European Small Claims Procedure. The new procedure will be available to litigants as an alternative to the procedures existing under the laws of the Member States. For the first time, citizens and businesses will have a speedy and affordable civil procedure at their disposal which is uniform in all Member States and in all procedural steps from the commencement of the procedure to the enforcement of the judgment. This Article lays out the main features of the Commission proposal.
Bericht über die Tagung ’agere in rem’ - Eigentumsschutz in Kontinentaleuropa: Theorie und Praxis, 7.-10. Oktober 2004 im Centro Congressi Panorama,
Authors: Giebel Michael
Published: April 2022

Die Rechtsvereinheitlichung auf europäischer Ebene fokussiert sich in immer stärkerem Maße auf das Privatrecht. Auch wenn sie sich bisher eher auf einzelne Spezialfragen auf dem Gebiet des Schuldrechts konzentriert, können sich auch aus unterschiedlichen Regelungen auf dem Gebiet des Sachenrechts Hemmnisse für den Binnenmarkt ergeben. Vor diesem Hintergrund fand vom 7.-10. Oktober 2004 im Centro Congressi Panorama zu Sardagna, Trient, die Tagung ?agere in rem? statt. Juristen aus verschiedenen europäischen Ländern ? Wissenschaftler wie Praktiker ? diskutierten über vier Tage hinweg über den Eigentumsschutz in Kontinental­europa, um eine mögliche Basis für eine europaweit einheitliche Regelung zu finden. Eingeladen dazu hatten Massimo Miglietta und Gianni Santucci aus Trient sowie Christian Baldus aus Heidelberg.
The Distinction between Obligations de Résultat and Obligations de Moyens and the Enforceability of Promises
Authors: Alessi Dario
Published: April 2022

The distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens was proposed at the beginning of the last century by Demogue, a famous French scholar. According to the distinction, while an obligation de résultat is directed at guaranteeing the attainment of a specific result, an obligation de moyens consists of the employment of the duty of care in performing a contractual obligation. Such distinction gained some success and was transplanted in many jurisdictions.

This contribution considers the distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens as a juridical epiphany of those conceptions of contract law founding the enforceability of promises on the mere will of the parties. In this contribution two questions are posed: the first concerns the conditions under which responsibility for breach of contract is triggered and the second deals with the extent to which the promisor shall be bound to the given promise. By providing an answer to these questions, this contribution reveals that the distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens is logically based upon a questionable method of abstraction rooted in the evolution of the law towards the abandoning of the traditional ideas and concepts having characterized contract law for centuries. The historical process of abandonment of the criteria of enforceability of promises, with particular regard to the subjectivization of causa, has provided the conceptual grounds for the coming into existence of the distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens. The distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens is based upon the reduction of causa to any subjective reason or motive for contracting. Precisely, the distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens holds and presupposes causa as the promisor?s subjective motive to which the obligation tends and which shall be realized by the promise.

This process is however flawed since causa in its objective meaning represents something unavoidable for the enforcement of promises. The existence of causa (intended as the contractual exchange) represents a juridical necessity in contracts. Although shaped into different forms, the objective contractual exchange represents the same entity for every obligation; thus, in every obligation the requirement of an objective causa must exist to make it enforceable.

As the necessity of the existence of an objective causa is ascertained, the validity of the distinction between obligations de résultat and obligations de moyens is strongly challenged.
Cour de Cassation (Belgique), 2 septembre 2004 - Honoraires et frais d’avocats et conseil technique à cause de dommages contractuels à indemniser
Authors: Kilian Matthias , Bayod Lopez Carmen , Christakakou-Fotiadi Kalliopi
Published: April 2022

In this judgment, the Cour de cassation held that the legal fees and expenses of a lawyer or of a technical expert to which the victim of a contractual fault is exposed may constitute an element of damage that may give rise to compensation. These expenses are an element of the damage because they are made necessary by the non-performance of the agreement. In this particular (and most likely exceptional) case, it was clear that the legal statutory reimbursement which comprises the procedural indemnities (of first instance and of appeal) must be considered completely insufficient; moreover, in this case, considering the complexity of the cause, it must be admitted that an amount of expenses and fees (exceeding the allowances for procedure) forms an integral part of the damages suffered by defendants in the relationship between necessary causality and the faults made by applicants.
EU Fundamental Rights, EC Fundamental Freedoms and Private Law
Authors: Cherednychenko Olha O.
Published: April 2022

Originally, private law was considered to be immune from the effect of fundamental rights, the function of which was limited to being individual defenses against the vigilant eye of the state. This traditional view, however, has been put under pressure as a result of the growing effect of fundamental rights in private law, which makes it possible to speak about the tendency towards the constitutionalization of private law. Although until recently this tendency has primarily manifested itself in the national law of many EU Member States as a result of the readiness of the domestic courts to grant effect to fundamental rights embodied in national constitutions and international human rights instruments in purely private law disputes, an interesting perspective on the issue is also provided by EU law. The aim of this article is to trace in EU law the signs of the developments which have been occurring in national legal systems with regard to the effect of fundamental rights in private law, and, in the light of this, to outline possible directions in the evolution of the relationship between private law, on the one hand, and EC fundamental freedoms and EU fundamental rights, on the other, in the context of EU law.
Cour de cassation, ass. plén., arrêt No. 520 du 6 décembre 2004 - Le contrat de cautionnement qui garantit le paiement des loyers d’un immeuble donné a bail se transmet-il de plein droit
Authors: Van Erp Sjef , Jansen Ruud , González Pacanowska Isabel , Schmid Achim
Published: April 2022

In case of sale of a building, is the guarantee which secures the payment of the rents of this building, transmitted automatically to the new owner? Or, on the contrary, if the guarantor fails to show his intention to engage himself towards the new lessor, should the guaranty not be extended towards the latter? Based on numerous articles of the Civil Code, the case comes clearly down in favour of an automatic transmission of the guarantee (see the combined effect of Article 1743 and Articles 1692, 2013 and 2015 Civil Code).
Change of Position or Wegfall der Bereicherung in Dutch Law
Authors: van Kooten Hugo J.
Published: April 2022

This paper seeks to survey the Dutch position on the defence known in the common law of restitution as change of position and in German enrichment law as Wegfall der Bereicherung. It argues that Dutch law fits well into the picture presented in comparative legal writings on the subject, i.e. the picture of sets of specific rules varying from country to country, yet often leading to the same outcome.
Is Good Faith an Over-Arching General Clause in the Principles of European Contract Law?
Authors: Lando Ole
Published: April 2022

Abstract: In this article, O. Lando investigates if good faith can be considered an overarching principle in European contract law. It looks at the principle from a historical and comparative law perspective. In all continental European countries a general principle of good faith can be found. The principle is also encountered in the Principles of European Contract Law, the Unidroit Principles of Commercial Contracts and, to some extent, in the Vienna Convention on the International Sale of Goods. However, in English law good faith is not treated as an over-arching principle, although the principle can be found incidentally in specific regulations and cases. O. Lando concludes that, in spite of logical and technical arguments to the contrary made by H. Beale, good faith is an over arching principle.

Résumé: Dans cet article, O. Lando étudie si la bonne foi peut être considérée comme un principe primordial du droit européen des contrats en l’analysant du point de vue historique et du point de vue du droit comparé. Le principe de bonne foi se retrouve dans tous les pays continentaux européens et est également présent dans les Principes du droit européen des contrats, les Principes d’UNIDROIT relatifs aux contrats du commerce international, et dans une certaine mesure, dans la Convention de Vienne sur les contrats de vente internationale de marchandises. Le droit anglais cependant ne traite pas la bonne foi comme un principe primordial, bien que le principe puisse incidemment être trouvé dans des législations spécifiques et dans la jurisprudence. O. Lando conclut qu’en dépit des arguments techniques et logiques contraires exposés par H. Beale, la bonne foi est un principe primordial.

Zusammenfassung: In seinem Beitrag untersucht O. Lando, ob das Institut des Treu und Glaubens als allumfassender Grundsatz innerhalb des europäischen Vertragsrechts angesehen werden kann. Der Beitrag stellt diesen Grundsatz sowohl in einem historischen als auch in einem vergleichenden Zusammenhang dar. In allen Staaten des europäischen Kontinents ist ein allgemeiner Grundsatz des Treu und Glauben wiederzufinden. Dieser Grundsatz ist ebenfalls in den Principles of European Contract Law, den Unidroit Principles sowie zum Teil auch im Übereinkommen der Vereinten Nationen über Verräge über den internationalen Warenkauf aufgenommen. Im englischen Recht wird der Grundsatz des True und Glaubens nicht als ein allumfassender Grundsatz angesehen, obwohl er gelegentlich in einigen spezifischen Bestimmungen und gerichtlichen Entscheidungen wiederzufinden ist. O. Lando folgert, dass der Grundsatz des Treu und Glaubens trotz einiger logischer und technischer Gegenargumente, die insbesondere durch H. Beale vorgetragen wurden, im Ergebnis als ein allumfassender Grundsatz angesehen werden kann.
Privacy and Data Protection in Spain. A Spanish Comment on Two German Decisions
Authors: Feliu Josep Solé
Published: April 2022

Zusammenfassung: Der nachfolgende Beitrag befasst sich mit zwei Entscheidungen des deutschen Bundesgerichtshofs zum Schutz der Privatsphäre und des Rechts auf informationelle Selbstbestimmung und geht der Frage nach, wie die beiden Fälle nach spanischem Recht zu lösen gewesen wären. In den beiden Urteilen gab das höchste deutsche Gericht bei Veröffentlichungen von Fotos von Privatanwesen prominenter Personen, die während eines Helikoptersfluges entstanden waren, dem Informationsinteresse der Allgemeinheit den Vorrang vor der Privatsphäre des Prominenten. Anders urteilte das Gericht jedoch über die Zulässigkeit von Wegbeschreibungen zum Haus des Prominenten. Hier überwiegt, so dass Gericht, das Recht auf informationelle Selbstbestimmung; das Informationsinteresse der Allgemeinheit muss dahinter zurücktreten. Die beiden Autoren nehmen diese Zweiteilung zwischen Schutz der Privatsphäre und dem Recht auf informationelle Selbstbestimmung auf und subsumieren die Ausgangsfälle unter das im Vergleich zum deutschen Recht spezieller entwickelte spanische Normengefüge.
The Binding of Individuals to Fundamental Consumer Rights in the Portuguese Legal System: Can/Should It Be Thought of in Terms of Direct Horizontal Effect?
Authors: Barbieri Diovana
Published: April 2022

Abstract: In the Portuguese legal system, consumer rights are considered fundamental rights. According to the law, the Constitution’s provisions with regard to rights, freedoms and guarantees are directly applicable to and binding on public and private persons and bodies. So the question is: can/should consumer rights listed in Article 60 of the Portuguese Constitution be thought to have direct horizontal effect? To answer this question, it is important to analyze whether this legal provision is enough to produce such effect and whether directly invoking the Constitution would, in fact, benefi t consumer protection.

Zusammenfassung: Im portugiesischen Rechtssystem werden Verbraucherrechte als Grundrechte angesehen. Auch sollen dem Gesetz nach die konstitutionellen Bestimmungen über die Rechte, Freiheiten und Gewährleistungen direkt anwendbar und bindend für öffentliche und private Personen und Körperschaften sein. So ist die Frage: Können/Sollen Verbraucherrechte, die in Artikel 60 der Portugiesischen Verfassung aufgelistet sind, so gesehen werden, dass sie eine direkte Horizontalwirkung haben? Um diese Frage zu beantworten, ist es wichtig, zu analysieren, ob diese echtliche Bestimmung genügt, eine solche Wirkung zu erzeugen, ob die direkte Berufung auf die Verfassung tatsächlich einen Vorteil für den Verbraucherschutz darstellt, und schließlich, ob das Fehlen einer Verfassungsbeschwerde ein Hindernis der Existenz von Direktwirkung von Rechten, Freiheiten und Gewährleistungen in rechtlichen Beziehungen zwischen Privaten darstellen würde.

Stichwörter: Verbraucherrechte, Grundrechte, Privatrecht, Horizontalwirkung

Résumé: Dans le système juridique portugais, les droits des consommateurs sont considérés comme des droits fondamentaux. Aussi, conformément à la loi, les dispositions de la Constitution en ce qui concerne les droits, libertés et garanties sont directement applicable set s’imposent aux personnes et organismes publiques et privés. D’où la question suivante: les droits des consommateurs visés à l’article 60 de la Constitution portugaise peuvent–ils/ doivent–ils être considérés comme ayant un effet horizontal direct? Pour répondre à cette question, il est important d’analyzer si cette disposition légale est suffisante pour produire un tel effet, si l’invocation directe de la Constitution représenterait effectivement un avantage pour la protection des consommateurs, et, enfi n, si l’absence d’un recours individuel constitutionnel serait un obstacle à l’existence d’un effet direct des droits, libertés et garanties dans les relations juridiques privées.

Mots clés: droits des consommateurs, droits fondamentaux, droit privé, effet horizontal
Testamentary Freedom, Despotism and Fundamental Rights: A Critical Case Study on Drittwirkung
Authors: De Vos Bart J.
Published: April 2022

Abstract: The theory of the horizontal effect of fundamental rights or Drittwirkung, according to which fundamental rights apply in relationships between private parties, is proclaimed as an innovative and enriching recalibration of private law. Illustrated by means of the issue of conditional bequests, it is argued that this claim is highly exaggerated. The innovation is merely of a terminological nature: fundamental interests have been taken into account since days of old, only to become rephrased more recently in terms of fundamental rights. As a rule, private law does not have to refer to fundamental rights to protect these interests. Moreover, within the horizontal dimension, fundamental rights are inadequate instruments, the application of which is unlikely to offer any additional value.

Résumé: La théorie de l’effet horizontal des droits fondamentaux ou Drittwirkung, selon laquelle les droits fondamentaux sont applicables aux relations entre parties privées, est proclamé comme un re–calibrage novateur et enrichissant du droit privé. Illustré par la délivrance de legs conditionnels, cet article défend l’idée que cette affi rmation est fortement exagérée. L’innovation est seulement de nature terminologique: les intérêts fondamentaux ont toujours été pris en considération, et ont uniquement été reformulé récemment en termes de droits fondamentaux. En règle générale, le droit privé n’a pas besoin de se référer aux droits fondamentaux pour protéger ces intérêts. En outre, dans leur dimension horizontale, les droits fondamentaux sont des instruments inadaptés, dont l’application est peu susceptible d’offrir quelque valeur additionnelle que ce soit.

Mots clés: Drittwirkung, legs conditionnels.

Zusammenfassung: Die Theorie von der Horizontalwirkung der Grundrechte oder ?Drittwirkung?, der entsprechend Grundrechte in der Beziehung zwischen privaten Parteien Anwendung fi nden, wird als eine innovative und bereichernde Neujustierung des Privatrechts gesehen. Veranschaulicht durch die Problematik des bedingten Vermächtnisses, wird argumentiert, dass dieser Anspruch äußerst übertrieben ist. Die Neuerung ist lediglich terminologischer Natur: grundlegende Interessen sind seit jeher Beachtung geschenkt wurden, nur um später im Hinblick auf Grundrechte neu formuliert zu werden. In der Regel muss das Privatrecht sich nicht auf die Grundrechte beziehen, um diese Interessen zu schützen. Weiterhin sind Grundrechte in der horizontalen Dimension unzulängliche Instrumente, deren Anwendung nur unwahrscheinlich einen zusätzlichen Wert zu bieten vermag.

Stichwörter: Drittwirkung, bedingtes Vermächtnis.
The Quelle Case and the Potential of and Limitations to Interpretation in the Light of the Relevant Directive
Authors: Rott Peter
Published: April 2022

Abstract: The Quelle case is not only a milestone in the protection of consumers through European Court of Justice (ECJ) case law in that it prohibits sellers to impose any cost on consumers in the context of the replacement of a defective good. It also poses to the German courts the challenge of interpreting the German Civil Code in the light of the ECJ judgment in a situation where it is clear from the documentation of the legislative process that the legislator intended the seller to have a claim for compensation for use, inconsistent with the Quelle judgment. The author argues in favour of the prevalence of interpretation in the light of the Consumer Sales Directive, since the wording of the relevant § 439 BGB is suffi ciently open and since the legislator did intend to implement this Directive correctly, although it misinterpreted its scope of application.

Résumé: L’affaire Quelle n’est pas seulement un jalon dans la protection des consommateurs par la jurisprudence de la CJCE dans le sens qu’elle interdit aux vendeurs d’imposer des couts aux consommateurs dans le cas du remplacement d’un bien defectueux. Elle confronte egalement les tribunaux allemands a l’interpretation du Code Civil allemand a la lumiere de l’arret de la CJCE dans un cas ou il est clair, au vu des travaux preparatoires, que le legislateur entendait attribuer au vendeur une action en reparation pour usage, action incoherente eu egard a l’arret Quelle. L’auteur plaide en faveur de la primaute de l’interpretation a la lumiere de la directive de vente aux consommateurs, etant donne d’une part que la formulation du paragraphe pertinent § 439 BGB est suffi samment ouverte et d’autre part que le legislateur entendait bien appliquer cette directive correctement, bien qu’il eut mal interprete son domaine d’application.

Zusammenfassung: Der Quelle–Fall ist nicht nur ein Meilenstein des Verbraucherschutzes durch den EuGH, in dem dieser es Verkaufern untersagt, Verbrauchern irgendwelche Kosten im Zusammenhang mit der Ersatzlieferung fur eine mangelhafte Ware aufzuerlegen. Er stellt gleichzeitig den deutschen Gerichten die Herausforderung, das BGB richtlinienkonform auszulegen, obwohl die Begrundung des Gesetzesvorschlags der Regierung eindeutig erkennen lasst, dass der Gesetzgeber dem Verkaufer in dieser Situation einen Anspruch auf Nutzungsersatz zuerkennen wollte, der mit dem Quelle–Urteil nicht zu vereinbaren ist. Der Autor spricht sich dennoch fur eine richtlinienkonforme Auslegung aus, weil der Wortlaut des hier masgeblichen § 439 BGB hinreichend offen ist und der Gesetzgeber beabsichtigte, die Richtlinie korrekt umzusetzen und lediglich deren Regelungsintensitat fehl interpretierte.