Aims and Scope

Abstract

In assessing the aims and scope of tort law on the European level, the legal order in which it operates must be kept in mind. When the European legal order was first established its aims were primarily economic. However, the aims of the Community have since been substantially widened. The creation of the Common Market is no longer the sole ambition of the European project. Other concerns, such as equality between men and women and environmental aims, which were considered tangential elements to the creation of the Common Market, have been elevated to aims in their own right. The jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice has also determined that the European legal order affords rights to individuals in the Member States which can be relied upon in court. The institutions have also been active in promulgating a huge body of law affecting the daily lives of the citizens of Europe. Legislative efforts in areas of consumer protection and environmental protection are particularly notable. This has resulted in a non-insignificant effect on the civil law spheres of the Member States and rules in tort law and contract law emanating from Europe are now employed in the national courts. Whilst the development of these rules has not necessarily followed a strict path, certain principles are to be found. Although it is not easy to pinpoint borders between contractual and non-contractual liability under the European regime, principles are discernible. Similarly, although no specific function has been proffered as the underlying rationale for an award of damages, familiar aims of compensation and deterrence have been relied upon by the courts when determining the effectiveness of a sanction.