The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily brought national and cross-border procedures to a standstill. Prior to the pandemic, the use of information and communication technology in court procedures was mostly voluntary and seldom used; although various developments were contemplated, they were slow to be f...

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Main Author: Elena Alina Onţanu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Queensland University of Technology 2023-05-01
Series:Law, Technology and Humans
Subjects:
Online Access:https://lthj.qut.edu.au/article/view/2706
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author Elena Alina Onţanu
author_facet Elena Alina Onţanu
author_sort Elena Alina Onţanu
collection DOAJ
description The COVID-19 pandemic temporarily brought national and cross-border procedures to a standstill. Prior to the pandemic, the use of information and communication technology in court procedures was mostly voluntary and seldom used; although various developments were contemplated, they were slow to be financed and implemented. The pandemic and associated limitations gave digitalisation of procedures, including at the European Union (EU) level, a new impetus and increased authorities’ and professionals’ openness towards technology, including in cross-border judicial cooperation. The measures adopted at the time of writing focus on aspects such as communication between competent national authorities in taking of evidence and service of documents. These are expected to soon be extended to all other EU private international law instruments. In cross-border claims, e-CODEX will be the decentralised information technology system used in this process of facilitating access to justice with digital support. The aim is for identification and certifications of e-signatures and e-identities in this digital environment to be based on the eIDAS Regulation. While all these are welcome developments for facilitating and speeding up access to justice, this paper points out that the process still requires some years for its full implementation and may be exposed to various risks, complexities and challenges. Consequently, the process will not put an end to the EU fragmentation but will work around national and EU realities.
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spelling doaj.art-ec4939fad7214825b11f4ec3483c21c92023-05-31T02:31:31ZengQueensland University of TechnologyLaw, Technology and Humans2652-40742023-05-01519311010.5204/lthj.27063029The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged CrisisElena Alina Onţanu0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6935-3627Tilburg UniversityThe COVID-19 pandemic temporarily brought national and cross-border procedures to a standstill. Prior to the pandemic, the use of information and communication technology in court procedures was mostly voluntary and seldom used; although various developments were contemplated, they were slow to be financed and implemented. The pandemic and associated limitations gave digitalisation of procedures, including at the European Union (EU) level, a new impetus and increased authorities’ and professionals’ openness towards technology, including in cross-border judicial cooperation. The measures adopted at the time of writing focus on aspects such as communication between competent national authorities in taking of evidence and service of documents. These are expected to soon be extended to all other EU private international law instruments. In cross-border claims, e-CODEX will be the decentralised information technology system used in this process of facilitating access to justice with digital support. The aim is for identification and certifications of e-signatures and e-identities in this digital environment to be based on the eIDAS Regulation. While all these are welcome developments for facilitating and speeding up access to justice, this paper points out that the process still requires some years for its full implementation and may be exposed to various risks, complexities and challenges. Consequently, the process will not put an end to the EU fragmentation but will work around national and EU realities.https://lthj.qut.edu.au/article/view/2706e-justiceelectronic communicationremote digital hearingseidase-codexelectronic service
spellingShingle Elena Alina Onţanu
The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis
Law, Technology and Humans
e-justice
electronic communication
remote digital hearings
eidas
e-codex
electronic service
title The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis
title_full The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis
title_fullStr The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis
title_full_unstemmed The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis
title_short The Digitalisation of European Union Procedures: A New Impetus Following a Time of Prolonged Crisis
title_sort digitalisation of european union procedures a new impetus following a time of prolonged crisis
topic e-justice
electronic communication
remote digital hearings
eidas
e-codex
electronic service
url https://lthj.qut.edu.au/article/view/2706
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