Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament and the European Economic and Social Committee - Towards a European e Justice Strategy SEC(2008)1947 SEC(2008)1944
Date: 2008-05-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European judicial area, access to the courts, exchange of information, information system, information technology, judicial cooperation in criminal matters in the EU

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 30.5.2008 
COM(2008)329 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE 

Towards a European e-Justice Strategy 

SEC(2008)1947 
SEC(2008)1944 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE 

Towards a European e-Justice Strategy 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Since  the  Amsterdam  Treaty  entered  into  force,  the  European  area  of  justice  has  become  a 
reality. It is founded on a number of legislative instruments designed to guarantee the mutual 
recognition  of  judicial  decisions,  create  a  culture  of  cooperation  between  national  legal 
authorities and accompany the free movement of citizens in a European area without internal 
frontiers. 

At  the  same  time,  demands  for  justice  are  increasing  throughout  Europe,  adding  to  the 
workload of judicial systems and making it necessary to continuously adapt working methods 
in what are often difficult budgetary contexts.  

Placing information and communication technologies (ICT) at the service of judicial systems 
creates possible solutions by improving their functioning and contributing to a streamlining of 
procedures and reduction in costs. 

"e-Justice"  represents  an  initial  response  to  the  threefold  need  to  improve  access  to  justice, 
cooperation between legal authorities and the effectiveness of the justice system itself. ICT's 
entry into this world is desirable and inescapable, but at the same time it raises expectations 
and questions. 

This  Communication  aims  to  propose  an  overall  strategy  that  creates  synergies  between 
efforts at European and national levels and offers the added value of economies of scale. 

For the Commission, efforts related to e-Justice must: 

•  give priority to operational projects; 

•  put  particular  emphasis  on  decentralised  architectures  without  neglecting  the  need 

for coordination at European level; 

•  respect, as far as possible, the existing legal framework by using ICT tools to improve 

the effectiveness of the legal instruments that have been or will be adopted.  

In  response  to  a  request  from  the  European  Council1  and  the  European  Parliament,  this 
Communication  proposes  an  e-Justice  Strategy  that  aims  to  increase  citizens'  confidence  in 
the European area of justice, a major source of legitimacy in a Union where the rule of law is 
one of the defining values. 

1 

Conclusions of the European Councils of 21 and 22 June 2007 and 14 December 2007. 

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2. 

WHAT IS E-JUSTICE? 

The  e-Justice  approach  uses  ICT  to  improve  citizens'  access  to  justice  and  to  make  legal 
action  more  effective,  the  latter  being  understood  as  any  type  of  activity  involving  the 
resolution of a dispute or the punishment of criminal behaviour.  

If judicial systems are to be modernised, the further development of e-Justice is crucial. The 
Commission, for its part, has long encouraged the use of ICT to promote judicial cooperation.  

Since  2003,  the  Commission  has  developed  the  portal  of  the  European  Judicial  Network  in 
civil and commercial matters2, and supported the creation of legal "atlases" for criminal and 
civil  law,  which  enable  professionals  to  identify  competent  legal  authorities  in  the  Member 
States.  Similarly,  the  Commission  has  always  encouraged  the  use  of  videoconferencing  and 
the electronic transmission of acts between legal authorities and is actively involved in efforts 
to interconnect criminal records.  

e-Justice is a specific field under the more general umbrella of e-Government. e-Government 
refers to the application of ICT to all administrative procedures. Existing expertise in secure 
infrastructure  and  document  authentication  projects  must  be  mobilised.  The  Commission 
intends  to  promote  a  European  Interoperability  Framework  (EIF)  within  the  IDABC 
programme3.  European  work  on  eSignature  and  e-Identity4  is  particularly  relevant  in  the 
legal field, where the authentication of acts is essential.  

e-Justice's  potential  scope  is  very  wide-ranging  and  will  have  to  evolve  in  tandem  with  the 
European judicial area and new technologies. Specific projects, however, should be initiated 
quickly.  A  perimeter  for  future  action  must  be  defined  so  that  overextension  does  not 
handicap the effectiveness and credibility of EU action. 

Some  projects  pertain  not  to  the  legal  sector  but  rather  to  e-Government.  And  so,  certain 
activities  that  sometimes  involve  legal  institutions  are  themselves  rather  administrative  in 
nature (e.g. land registers or the European Business Register)5. Conversely, activities such as 
arbitration  or  alternative  dispute  resolution  (ADR)  mechanisms  could  be  concerned  by 
e-Justice, even when they are managed by non-legal bodies. 

For the Commission, e-Justice's primary objective is to help justice to be administered 
more  effectively  throughout  Europe,  for  the  benefit  of  citizens.  The  first  hallmark  of 
priority projects should be that they help legal professionals work more effectively and 
citizens obtain justice more easily. They must also contribute to the implementation of 
existing  European  instruments  in  the  field  of  justice  and,  potentially,  involve  all  or  a 
large majority of Member States. 

2 
3 

http://ec.europa.eu/civiljustice/ 
http://ec.europa.eu/idabc/  Preliminary  study  on  mutual  recognition  of  e-Signatures  for  e-Government 
applications (2007) and eID Interoperability for PEGS (2007). 
Standardisation aspects of e-Signature –(2007) 

4 
http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/eeurope/i2010/docs/esignatures/e_signatures_standardisation.pdf 
5 

COM(2007) 807, section 4.2.; www.ebr.org; www.briteprojet.net 

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3. 

PROMOTING NATIONAL AND EUROPEAN SYNERGIES  

3.1. 

Strengthening the exchange of best practices at national level 

The development of e-Justice depends primarily on the will of the Member States. A recent 
study  by  the  German  e-Justice  academy6  showed  an  increasing  use  of  ICT  in  the 
administration  of  justice  within  the  European  Union.  A  recent  report  by  the  European 
Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) on this subject7 highlighted the same trend. 

At  national  level,  numerous  projects  are  helping  provide  litigants  with  information  more 
effectively: information on judicial systems, legislation and case law has been placed online; 
electronic communication  systems  linking litigants and the courts are developing; in certain 
cases,  fully  electronic  procedures  have  been  set  up.  The  use  of  electronic  tools  to  record 
hearings is increasing.  

At  European  level,  several  professional  organisations  are  developing  noteworthy  projects 
involving  information  exchange  or  interconnection.  These  include  the  internet  site  of  the 
Association of Councils of State8, the common portal of national case law of the EU Supreme 
Courts9 and the European Network of Registers of Wills10.  

In  the  Commission's  view,  these  projects  should  be  encouraged  and  successful 
experiments publicised and repeated. In this respect, the creation of the Justice Forum11 
offers  interesting  possibilities.  An  "e-Justice"  sub-group  will  be  created  within  the 
Forum to serve as a catalyst for the exchange of best practices among national judicial 
systems and among legal professionals. 

3.2. 

Strengthening  European  coordination  and  marshalling  e-Justice  to  help 
construct the European judicial area 

Numerous  e-Justice  projects  are  currently  under  development.  In  addition  to  those  already 
mentioned,  projects  concerning  legal  documentation  have  been  developed  by  both  the 
European Union12 and institutional and private operators13.  

The  Commission  supports  these  projects,  but  considers  that  it  is  important  to  make  EU 
judicial action more comprehensible, accessible and effective and to emphasise projects that 
will truly  add  value to  the European judicial area. Although judicial legislation has evolved 
considerably, its impact often remains limited due to difficulties of transposition (particularly 
in  criminal  matters)  and  because  professionals'  familiarity  with  it  is  lacking.  For  these 
reasons, one of the major issues related to Europe's judicial integration today is creating tools 
to  improve  the  practical  effectiveness  of  the  adopted  legal  instruments.  In  this  regard, 
e-Justice opens up remarkable opportunities. 

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7 

8 
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10 
11 
12 
13 

Doc. 9573/07 JURINFO 17. 
"Use of information and communication technology in European States", Working Group on evaluation 
of judicial systems (CEPEJ) Council of Europe (CEPEJ(2007) 22Prov). 
http://www.juradmin.eu/ 
http://www.network-presidents.eu/ 
Cf. www.cnue.be 
COM(2008) 38. 
EUR-Lex – http://eur-lex.europa.eu; N-Lex – http://eur-lex.europa.eu/n-lex – and the JURE database. 
www.caselex.com 

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This  is  why  the  European  Commission  intends  to  contribute  to  the  reinforcement  and 
development of e-justice tools at European level, in close coordination with the Member 
States  and  other  partners,  first  and  foremost  Eurojust  and  the  civil  and  criminal  law 
networks.  At  the  same  time  as  supporting  Member  States'  efforts,  the  Commission 
intends to develop a number of computer tools on its own to increase the interoperability 
of systems14, facilitate the public's access to justice and communication among judicial 
authorities and achieve substantial economies of scale at European level. 

4. 

WHAT PRIORITIES FOR ACTION (2008-2013)? 

The  EU's  action  in  the  area  of  e-Justice  should enable  citizens,  particularly  when  they  have 
been  the  victim  of  a  criminal  offence,  to  access  information  without  being  hindered  by  the 
linguistic, cultural and legal barriers related to the multiplicity of systems. This action should 
also support mechanisms promoting cooperation between legal authorities.  

4.1. 

A  European  e-Justice  portal  facilitating  access  by  citizens  and  enterprises  to 
justice in Europe 

The creation of an e-Justice portal for the public and enterprises should increase the visibility 
of European action and help improve access to justice in Europe. Ultimately, the portal will 
serve  as  the  face  of  the  European  area  of  justice  vis-à-vis  citizens  while  also  being  one 
element of a general policy of communication via the internet15. 

The portal will have at least three functions. 

a) Access to information 

The  portal  will  have  to  provide  European  citizens,  in  their  language,  with  data  on  judicial 
systems and procedures. Ignorance of the rules in force in other Member States is one of the 
major factors preventing citizens from asserting their rights outside their home country. 

14 
15 

The Commission will submit an action plan on the interoperability of eSignature and eIdentity. 
SEC(2007) 1742. 

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In particular, the portal will contain:  

•  European  and  national  information  on  victims'  rights  in  criminal  cases  and  their 

rights to compensation;  

•  the  fundamental  rights  enjoyed  by  citizens  in  each  Member  State  (rights  of  persons 

charged in criminal proceedings); 

•  fundamental  principles  relating  to  citizens'  ability  to  initiate  proceedings  before  a 
court in another Member State, or to their defence when summoned to appear before 
such a court. 

The  portal  will  also  provide  practical  information,  in  particular  regarding  the  competent 
authorities  and  how  to  contact  them,  the  use  (obligatory  or  optional)  of  lawyers  and  the 
procedures for obtaining legal aid. 

Some of this information already exists on the site of the judicial network in civil matters. It 
will be integrated into the portal and added to, as regards criminal law and victims' rights. 

b) Referral 

The portal must also refer visitors to existing sites (Eur-lex, Pre-lex, SCADPlus, Eurovoc and 
IATE),  to  European  legal  institutions  and  to  the  various  existing  legal  networks  and  their 
tools.  

Moreover, the portal will direct visitors to certain registers interconnected at European level 
via links to the bodies that manage these projects16. 

c) Direct access to certain European procedures 

In the long term, fully electronic European procedures could be created. Legal bases already 
do  exist,  such  as  for  example  the  "small  claims"  regulation17  and  the  "payment  procedure" 
regulation18.  

The possibility of using the portal to pay, for example, court fees should also be studied; as 
should, for the long term, the possibility for citizens of requesting their criminal record online 
and in the language of their choice. 

16 

17 
18 

Trade  registers  –  EBR  and  land  registers  –  EULIS.  Depending  on  the  solution  selected,  the 
interconnected insolvency registers will be accessible directly via the portal or indirectly. 
Regulation (EC) No 861/2007: OJ L 199, 31.7.2007. 
Regulation (EC) No 1896/2006: OJ L 399, 30.12.2006. 

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Access by citizens and entreprises to judicial systems  
(e-accessibility) 

 Information  

 for victims of criminal offences 
 on criminal proceedings 
 on the rights of the accused 
 on civil and commercial judicial systems 

 Link to 

  Criminal Atlas 

  Civil Atlas 

Links to legal documentation 

Aid for translation 

Alternative procedures & 
accompaniment for legal 
proceedings 

Links to e-Government sites 

 European electronic procedures 
European payment 
order/payment procedure 
  Other (online requests for 

criminal records) 

 Dynamic forms for private individuals 

 Eur-Lex 
 PreLex 
 Scad + 
 N-Lex 
 Oeil 

 Association of Councils of State 
 Network of Presidents of Supreme Judicial 
Courts 
 Caselex 
 Conseil des Notaires de l'Union Européenne 

 EBR 
 EULIS 
 SOLVIT 
 OHMI 
 Epoline 
 Search engine 

for insolvency 
registers 

 Alternative Dispute Resolution 
 INCADAT 
 E-Apostille 

 Eurovoc 
 IATE 
 Aid to translation (to be 
determined) 

4.2. 

e-Justice for more effective judicial cooperation 

The  creation  of  electronic  tools  must  accompany  the  implementation  of  the  EU's  judicial 
cooperation  instruments.  To  develop  these  tools,  the  Commission  intends  to  use  the  two 
existing  legal  networks  and  Eurojust  as  a  basis.  At  the  same  time  as  the  tools  are  set  up, 
appropriate information and training measures will need to be implemented. To this end, the 
Commission  will  work  more  closely  with  the  qualified  national  and  European  training 
structures,  in  particular  the  European  legal  training  network,  in  order  to  better  train  legal 
professionals in the new e-justice tools. 

4.2.1.  Continuing the interconnection of criminal records 

Interconnection of criminal records is the area in which e-Justice efforts have progressed the 
most, illustrating how a project begun by a small number of Member States can gradually take 
on a genuine European dimension.  

The Commission is working to enable all Member States to be interconnected as quickly as 
possible.  To  this  end,  it  has  submitted  several  legislative  proposals19  aiming  to  clarify  the 
legislative  framework  and  make  electronic  interconnection  possible.  As  part  of  preparations 
for the entry into force of the Framework Decision on the exchange of information extracted 
from criminal records, the Commission will launch two feasibility studies in order to organise 
the project as it develops and to extend the exchange of the information to cover third-country 
nationals convicted of criminal offences. 

This project offers two examples of the added value of action at EU level: 

19 

Proposal  for  a  Framework  Decision  on  the  exchange  of  information  extracted  from  criminal  records, 
COM(2005) 690 final/2. ECRIS proposal for a decision. 

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•  information  can  only  be  exchanged  if  it  is  of  the  same  nature  and  mutually 
comprehensible:  important  work  to  this  end  has  been  undertaken  as  part  of  the  pilot 
project20 and is described in the recent Commission proposal; 

•  in 2009, the Commission will provide the Member States with software designed to enable 
all  criminal  records  to  be  exchanged  within  a  short  timeframe21.  This  reference  system, 
combined with the use of s-TESTA to exchange information, will generate economies of 
scale because Member States will not have to do their own development work. It will also 
make it easier to run the project.  

For the Commission, this work constitutes the primary priority of e-Justice, because it 
concerns all the Member States, brings practical improvements to judicial cooperation 
and strengthens mutual confidence. It will be important, however, for these exchanges of 
information to go beyond judicial cooperation to incorporate other objectives (access to 
certain posts for example).  

4.2.2.  Creating  a  network  of  secure  exchanges  for  sharing  information  among  judicial 

authorities 

Judicial authorities should be able to exchange confidential data in complete confidence. With 
regard  to  criminal  matters22,  this  is  provided  for  in  several  European  instruments.  What  is 
important now is to move forward, building on the work already completed, in particular the 
EPOC III project developed by Eurojust. Such a mechanism could incorporate certain features 
of the Legal Atlas and the European Compendium23 in order to give to legal authorities a fully 
fledged  tool  for  offering  mutual  aid  in  judicial  matters.  Over  the  long  term  it  could  be 
supplemented  by  the  creation  of  a  virtual  exchange  platform,  integrating  automated 
translation systems, making it possible to share files among national judicial authorities. The 
project  will  take  account  of  new  technologies  that  can  be  used  to  secure  the  exchanges  and 
personal data24. 

4.2.3.  Facilitating use of videoconferencing  

Several  instruments  adopted  at  European  level  provide  for  the  use  of  videoconferencing 
during  judicial  proceedings25.  For  cultural,  linguistic  or  technical  reasons,  however,  these 
possibilities  remain  underused26.  A  recent  study  by  the  Council27  showed  that  laws  in  the 
majority of the Member States authorise videoconferencing. Even so, it is rare that actors in 
different  countries  use  it  to  communicate  with  one  another.  The  benefits  of  increased 

20 
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22 

23 
24 
25 

26 
27 

As of April 2008, 13 Member States were participating in the project. 
In an illustration of the practical benefits of interconnection, during the first month of operation of the 
electronic interconnection, France and Germany exchanged more information than they had during the 
10 previous years. 
Framework  decision  No 2002/584/JHA  of  13 June  2002;  Joint  Action  of  29 June  1998  (OJ L 191, 
7.7.1998, p. 4). 
The compendium can be used to create letters rogatory using a standardised, uniform procedure. 
http://cordis.europa.eu/ist/trust-security/index.html 
Convention  of  29 May  2000  (Article 10);  Framework  decision  2001/220/JHA  of  15 March  2001; 
Council  Regulation  (EC)  No 1206/2001  of  28 May  2001  (Articles 10  and  17);  Directive  2004/80/EC 
(Article 9);  Regulation  (EC)  No 861/2007  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  11 July 
2007 (Article 9). 
Doc. 14602/07, JURINFO 60. 
Doc. 6355/08, JURINFO 11. 

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videoconferencing  are,  however,  clear:  savings  of  time,  money  and  travel;  increased 
flexibility; etc.  

Actions must  therefore  be  undertaken  to  make  judicial  authorities aware of the  use of  these 
new technologies in civil and criminal crossborder judicial proceedings. 

The  Commission  will  support  national  efforts  and  ensure  that  choices  made  regarding 
technology  permit  European  interoperability.  In  cooperation  with  civil  and  criminal  legal 
networks,  the  Commission  will  place  online  a  user  manual  containing  general  and  national 
chapters clarifying the legal and technical conditions of use. The two Legal Atlases will make 
it possible to identify those courts having the necessary equipment. 

4.2.4.  Aid for translation 

Multilingualism  represents  a  major  challenge  to  the  development  of  a  genuine  European 
judicial area. Judicial proceedings take place almost exclusively in the national language, and 
the  use  of  foreign  languages  is  admitted  only  marginally.  The  Commission  is  therefore  a 
proponent of actions targeting translation and interpretation in judicial settings. 

•  Development of automated translation tools  

Automated  translation  can  provide  a  reader  with  superficial  knowledge  of  the 
contents  of  a  document  drafted  in  another  language.  It  certainly  has  a  place  in 
judicial  settings.  When  a  file  is  voluminous,  automated  translation  can  make  it 
possible to identify rapidly those elements useful for another case and which should 
be translated by a professional. It can also rapidly give actors basic information about 
the contents of a foreign court decision or an important document for proceedings.  

Tools  of  this  type  already  exist  and  are  available,  but  must  be  improved  and  fine 
tuned for use in the legal field. The cost of such tools and the legal conditions under 
which they could be provided to legal professionals and the general public should be 
studied.  

•  Database of legal translators and interpreters 

It is not always easy for citizens to find a translator or interpreter to assist them in 
court, particularly when the language involved is not widely spoken. The creation of 
a  European  database  of  legal  translators  and  interpreters  could  facilitate  the 
identification  of  existing  resources  by  extending  the  search  to  the  entire  EU.  In  a 
global manner, such a database would also improve the quality of legal translation by 
identifying particularly qualified legal translators/interpreters. Additional studies and, 
if possible, a pilot programme should be undertaken, including an examination of the 
possibility of using videoconferencing to have access to legal interpreters located in 
another Member State. 

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•  Online forms for automated translations 

Most  EU  instruments  are  accompanied  by  standardised  forms  intended  to  facilitate 
mutual comprehension. In order to improve the effectiveness of judicial cooperation, 
it should be possible to produce an automatic translation of not only their template 
but also their content. The Commission will use the civil and criminal legal networks 
and  Eurojust  to  standardise  the  use  of  dynamic  forms  with  predetermined  text  and 
terminology in order to quickly transmit requests and information in all languages of 
the Union.  

Judge country Z 

Judge country Y 

Criminal record 
country Z 

Criminal record 
country Y 

Civil EJN 

 Civil Atlas 
 Online forms 

Criminal EJN 

 Criminal Atlas 
 Compendium 

Interconnection of criminal 
records 

 Information on videoconferencing 
 Automatic translation tools 
 List of sworn translators 

Secure 
exchange 
network 

Virtual exchange platform 

Reservation of 
videoconferences 

5. 

TOWARDS A EUROPEAN E-JUSTICE ACTION PLAN 

A  draft  action  plan  and  timetable  for  the  various  projects  are  annexed  to  the 
Communication.  

To  be  effective,  responsibilities  must  be  clearly  allocated  among  the  Commission, 
the Member States and other actors involved in judicial cooperation. From a financial 
point  of  view,  e-Justice  must  develop  by  mobilising  the  existing  financial 
programmes: Civil Justice28 and Criminal Justice29. 

The  Commission  will  assume  a  general  role  of  coordination  by  encouraging  the 
exchange  of  best  practices.  In  accordance  with  the  applicable  procedures,  grants 
could  be  used  to  support  projects  proposed  by  the  Member  States  or  the  relevant 

28 
29 

Decision No 1149/2007/EC (OJ L 257, 3.10.2007). 
Decision No 126/2007/JHA (OJ L 58, 24.2.2007). 

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professional  bodies.  In  criminal  matters,  it  is  possible  to  some  extent  to  finance 
national projects whose aim is to increase the use of ICT. There are two legal bases 
for the financing of transnational e-justice projects proposed by the Member States or 
the bodies concerned.  

The Commission will design and set up the e-Justice portal, which it will manage in 
close  cooperation  with  the  Member  States.  The  Member  States  will  have  to  update 
the  information  on  their  judicial  systems  that  appears  on  the  site.  The  Commission 
will  also  coordinate  the  information  on  the  various  existing  e-Justice  sites  and 
manage the related links. The Commission will develop the computer tools necessary 
for  European  online  procedures  according  to  the  results  of  the  feasibility  studies. 
Financing  of  the  portal  should  come  from  the  Community  budget  under  existing 
programmes. 

The  Commission  will  continue  to  work  to  interconnect  criminal  records  by  (1) 
supporting Member States' modernisation efforts, (2) developing a reference system 
enabling  all  parties  to  exchange  information  and  (3)  carrying  out  the  necessary 
studies,  developments  and  legislative  proposals  to  develop  the  system  and  create  a 
register of convicted third-county nationals, something that has been under study for 
several  years30.  The  Specific  Programme  'Criminal  Justice'  will  continue  to  be 
mobilised for this purpose31. 

The Commission will of course continue to assume direct responsibility for the civil 
legal network and support the criminal legal network. It will work closely with the 
civil and criminal legal networks and with Eurojust to develop the tools necessary for 
more effective judicial cooperation, in particular automated translation tools and the 
secure exchange system.  

During  the  mid-term  evaluation  of  the  financial  programmes,  the  development  of 
e-Justice  will  have  to  be  taken  into  account  and  the  financing  re-evaluated,  if 
necessary32.  In  the  medium  term,  a  single,  cross-cutting  programme  covering  civil 
and criminal matters could be contemplated.  

30 
31 
32 

COM(2006) 351final. 
In 2008, €15 million will be devoted to criminal-record programmes. 
Nearly €26 million in appropriations will potentia lly be available for the two programmes in 2008. 

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Annex 1: 

Area 

E-justice portal 

interconnection of 
criminal records 

Annexes 

Project 

Action needed 

period 

development of e-Justice pages 

interconnection  of  national  criminal 
records 

feasibility 

- 
study  and 
development  of  the  portal 
of 
- 
implementation 
methods 
management 
- information online in all EU 
languages 

2008-
2011 

- support for pilot project 
- development by 
Commission of reference 
computer system  
- feasibility study on 
technical impact of 
Framework Decision's 
implementation 
- Strengthening of system to 
ensure quality of exchanged 
data and achieve exchange 
of information for 
administrative purposes 

2008-
2011 

creation  of  a  European  register  of 
convicted third-country nationals 

feasibility 

- 
study 
-  submission  of  legislative 
proposal 

2009-
2010 

national database 
interconnection  

(projects 
only) 

falling  under  e-Justice 

interconnection 
registers 

of 

insolvency 

monitoring of Member State 
efforts 

2009 

Electronic exchanges 
between legal authorities 

electronic signature 

-  assessment  of  current 
situation 
- study into use of electronic 
signatures in legal setting 

secure network  

feasibility study 

virtual-exchange platform 

feasibility study 

2009-
2011 

2010-
2012 

2012-
2013 

Aid for translation 

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   EN 

 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Gradual compilation  of comparative 
multilingual legal vocabulary 

- pilot project 

financing  for  legal  translation  tools 
in all European language pairs 

creation of database of legal 
translators & interpreters 

Creation of dynamic forms to accompany European legislative 
texts 

- assessment of existing 
tools 
- technical and legal 
feasibility study 
- pilot project 

feasibility study 
pilot project 
dissemination on sites of 
European Judicial Network 

feasibility 

- 
studies 
-  development  of  online 
forms 

Forms for criminal EJN – translation 
and conversion into dynamic forms 

creation  of  dynamic  forms  for  civil 
proceedings 

publication on e-Justice 
portal or network sites 

2009-
2013 

2009-
2013 

2009 

2008-
2011 

2009-
2011 

2010-
2012 

including 
(European payment procedure) 

online 

for 

payment 

feasibility  study  on  security 
of  platform  and  payment 
management 

2010 

videoconferencing 

compilation  of  practical  information 
and instruction manuals 

- drawing up of user 
manuals by Member States 
and Commission with 
support from networks 
- publication on network 
sites 

professional  training  in  technology 
and use within organisations 

no 

2008-
2009 

2008-
2010 

exchange 
practices 

of 

best 

as part of e-Justice forum 

annual 
e-Justice themes 

meetings 

on 

2008-
2013 

training of legal 
professionals in judicial 
cooperation 

using 

translation  and 

videoconferencing
* 
* 
interpretation 
issues,  including  training  in  legal 
terminology 

work  with  European  legal 
and 
training 
Member States 

network 

2008-
2013 

EN 

13 

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