Convention on the service and notification of judicial and extra judicial acts, civil and commercial

The committee gave its opinion on the "Convention on the service in the Member States of judicial and extrajudicial documents in civil and commercial matters". The rapporteur, Mr Hartmut NASSAUER (PPE, D) considered that the intervention of the Court of Justice of the European Communities was an improvement over the Hague Convention on the service of judicial documents. For the rest, it did not appear certain that the despatch by bailiff in one Member State to a bailiff in another Member State would become the rule. Because of this and because certain obsolete and inappropriate methods of service with numerous reservations have been maintained, the proposal gives the impression of changing little. However, that would only be necessary if there were insoluble problems, whereas at the moment the number one problem is that of time and, in this respect, the convention will probably provide the solution. The remaining question is whether this proposal will not represent a lost chance to improve the harmonization of service and notification procedures in intra-Community relations.�