European Law Institute

The European Law Institute ( ELI) is a nonprofit organization that was founded on the model of the American Law Institute (ALI) and, similar to the ALI, both Fellows (individual members ) and from observers (Individual or Institutional Observer ) is. Members of the ELI, in addition to numerous international organizations, courts, and professional associations mainly European and international legal experts from various disciplines and professions from practice and research.

Genesis

In the past ten years there has been particular in the literature calls for a permanent private legal institution to support the European legal development. The establishment of a European counterpart of the American Law Institute was demanded.

In 2010 it succeeded in several initiatives such as the European University Institute ( EUI ) and the Association for a European Law Institute ( ELIA ) merge into a single, comprehensive initiative.

Then, the ELI was established on 1 June 2011 in Paris. The Association headquarters are in Brussels since then, the Secretariat and its staff are located in Vienna. The latter was opened on 17 November 2011 during a ceremony at the University of Vienna. For the European Commission took part in this event, the Vice - President and Commissioner for Justice Viviane Reding, who delivered the keynote speech. On 26 March 2012, the ELI by the President and other members of the Committee was presented for Legal Affairs of the European Parliament.

Organs

Since September 2013, the former MEP Diana Wallis President of ELI. As the first President ELI served the former Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Communities, Francis Geoffrey Jacobs. Members of the Senate include the former President of the Austrian Supreme Court Irmgard Griss, and the Director at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, Reinhard Zimmermann. The Council, the main decision-making body of the ELI, currently has 60 elected members. Below this is about the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales John Thomas. Overall, the General Assembly of all members currently counts more than 950 people. New members need to make a selection according to specific criteria.

Hubs

Currently, preparations are underway for the establishment of so-called national hubs across Europe. These are intended to facilitate communication both between the members and to the outside and facilitate recruiting additional members. Such hubs are already in France, was founded in the UK, Austria and Germany.

Projects

The European Law Institute aims in scientific and practical terms, the development of the law in Europe, in the broadest sense to contribute. The latest information on projects and activities of the Institute can be found in the News section of the ELI website and in published there monthly newsletters. The projects pursued either have a short maturity ( Statements) or are planned for several years ( Instruments). The selection, care and adoption of new projects is based on the so-called ELI Project Guidelines. Among the completed projects of the different working groups of the ELI include a statement on the European Commission Proposal for a Common European Sales Law, a statement concerning the excessive workload of the European Court of Human Rights. and a statement in the field of European copyright law, which was submitted to the European Commission as part of a public consultation.