Comparative Law - A Must in the European Union: Demonstrated by Tort Law as an Example

Abstract

The European Union advances the unification or at least harmonization of the legal systems of its Member States. How and to what extent should effective unification take place? To date, selective harmonization in the form of directives and regulations, evidently the work of compromise and political steer, have highlighted the want of a consistent concept of harmonization. This inconsistency is further reinforced by the decisions of the European Court of Justice. Notwithstanding the difficulties necessarily inherent in the embarkment of harmonization, later on coherent harmonization, this article advocates the exploit of comparative law, and its intrinsic rewards, to achieve these ends. Thus, a comparative approach was pivotal to the European Group on Tort Law in its drafting of the Principles of European Tort Law with the aim of creating overarching tort concepts on the European level. Much of the article is dedicated to illustrating the benefits of comparative law in the area of tort law, with a particular emphasis on wrongfulness and causation. Comparative law facilitates an in-depth inquiry into the historical development of the relevant field of interest, differences and similarities across Member States in their approach to that field and how it fits into the wider legal mosaic in each State. Such an approach thus guarantees a more consistent and coherent approach to the harmonization or unification of Member State laws.