Modern constitutionalism has put a lot of hopes in parliaments, but there is some consensus that these hopes have not been entirely fulfilled. At the same time, the role of parliaments in contemporary democracies continues to evolve as parliaments are faced with new challenges. How should they react to the new forms of executive and administrative action? Should they play a role in upholding judicial independence, although the latter is frequently seen as independent from parliament as well as the executive? How should they contribute to the protection of fundamental rights? This book...

The discourse of -Better Regulation- is a hot topic, intimately associated with the drive for cost savings and a more efficient economy. In the UK and in the EU, rule-makers have lately endeavored to achieve a more satisfactory balance between the demands of proper protection from market failure and inequity on the one hand, and commercial freedom and the potential for innovation on the other. But who is the regulator listening to, and what effect does this have on the regulatory pattern governing the integrating EU market? What is the best practice in the matter of regulatory assessment. The...

One of the issues left untouched by the Brussels Convention of September 27, 1968 (and by the Brussels-1 Regulation replacing it) concerns the leeway left to domestic courts when applying European rules on international jurisdiction in civil and commercial matters. For instance, is the court under a duty of strict compliance with the jurisdiction rule as it is drafted? Would such a duty go so far as to require the court to abide by the jurisdiction rule, even though it is being used by one of the litigants to achieve an unfair result, for example to delay adjudication on the merits? Under...

Contractual remedies aimed at performance create a well-known rift between common law and civil law traditions, in the one existing in the shadow of damages, while in the other regarded as a generally enforceable right following from the contract. Developments in approximation of laws in Europe, in particular in consumer sales law, suggest however that a convergence of these approaches may be within reach. Putting the focus on the contract of sale, which, as the most common type of contract, may fulfill a leading role in the harmonization process, this book provides a model for further...