The Article 7 TUE Procedure and the Free Movement of Judgments in the EU

Abstract

The paper is on the impact of the initiation the Article 7 TUE procedure against the Member State on recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil matters in the EU. The recognition and enforcement of judgments in the EU is based on the principle of mutual trust, so it can be assumed that the initiation of the procedure against the one of the Member States significantly reduces the level of mutual trust, therefore disrupt the free movement of judgements within the EU.

At the end of 2016 the Article 7 procedure was started against Poland (COM (2017) 835). This is the first such case in the EU history, so the consequences of initiating this procedure, including its impact on the functioning of judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters is current and important.

The paper presents the possible impact of the Article 7 procedure on the free movement of judgements in civil and commercial matters and the consequences of it for the functioning of internal market.

Keywords: mutual trust, article 7 TEU procedure, rule of law, European Arrest Warrant, recognition of judgements in civil matters