Date: 19th December 2017
The lack of collective redress in Europe remains an issue for the European finance industry, especially from the perspective of investors and shareholders (see BETTER FINANCE paper here). Given that procedural law falls under the exclusive competence of Member States (still), there is no harmonising legislation fostering cross-border class-action lawsuits in Europe.
As became apparent following Dieselgate, it was difficult for investors and shareholders of Volkswagen as consumers to bring claims together in court. Moreover, the recent Opinion of AG Bobek in the Schrems[1] case didn’t make the situation easier, as he suggested that the provisions of Regulation (EU) 44/2001 should not be construed as allowing a claimant to pursue claims on behalf of other parties in a consumer related case.