17 Amendments of Gunnar BECK related to 2022/0117(COD)
Amendment 101 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) The safeguards provided in this Directive should apply to any natural or legal person on account of their engagement in public participation. They should also protect natural or legal persons who, either on a professional or on a personal basis, support, assist or provide goods or services to another person for purposes directly linked to public participation on a matter of public interest. This involves for example internet providers, publishing houses or print shops, which face or are threatened with court proceedings for providing services to the person targeted with court proceedings.
Amendment 105 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) This Directive should apply to any type of legal claim or action of a civil or commercial nature with cross-border implications whatever the nature of the court or tribunal. This includes civil claims brought in criminal proceedings. It also includes interim and precautionary measures, counteractions or other particular type of remedies available under other instruments.
Amendment 108 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 16
Recital 16
(16) Public participation should mean any statement or activity by a natural or legal person expressed or carried out in any form in exercise of the right to freedom of expression and information on a matter of public interest, such as the creation, exhibition, advertisement or other promotion of journalistic, political, scientific, academic, artistic, commentary or satirical communications, publications or works, and any preparatory activities directly linked theretoor filing of complaints, petitions, claims and participation in public hearings. It can also include activities related to the exercise of the right to freedom of association and peaceful assembly, such as the organisation of or participation to lobbying activities, demonstrations and protests or activities resulting from the exercise ofas well as to the right to good administration and the right to an effective remedy, such as the filing of complaints, petitions, administrative and judicial claims and participation in public hearings. Public participation should also include preparatory, supporting or assisting activities that have a direct and inherent link to the statement or activity in question and that are targeted to stifle public participationaccess to justice. In addition, it can cover other activities meant to inform or influence public opinion or to further action by the public, including activities by any private or public entity in relation to an issue of public interest, such as the organisation of or participation to research, surveys, campaigns or any other collective actions.
Amendment 115 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 18
Recital 18
(18) The notion of a matter of public interest should include also quality, safety or other relevant aspects of goods, products or services where such matters are relevant to public health, safety, the environment, climate or enjoyment of fundamental rights. A purely individual dispute between a consumer and a manufacturer or a service provider concerning a good, product or service should not be covered only when the matter contains an element of public interest, for instance concerning a product or service which fails to comply with environmental or safety standards.
Amendment 131 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) This Directive shall be considered lex specialis with respect to Regulation 1215/2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (recast).For matters not specifically covered in this Directive, the said Regulation shall apply. A matter should be considered to have cross-border implications unless both parties are domiciled in the same Member State as the court seised. Even where both parties are domiciled in the same Member State as the court seised, a matter should be considered to have cross-border implications in two other types of situations. The first situation i, such as where the specific act of public participation concerning a matter of public interest at stake took place in more than one Member States or it is relevant to more than one Member State. That includes for instance public participation in events organised by Union institutions, such as appearances in public hearings, or statements or activities on matters that are of specific relevance to more than one Member State, such as cross-border pollution or allegations of money laundering with potential cross- border involvement. The second situation where a matter should be considered to have cross-border implications is wWhen the claimant or associated entities have initiated concurrent or previous court proceedings against the same or associated defendants in another Member State involving the same cause of action , the existing relevant rules on Lis pendens and related actions shall apply. These two types of situations take into consideration the specific context of SLAPPs.
Amendment 141 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 30
Recital 30
Amendment 160 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 34 a (new)
Recital 34 a (new)
(34 a) This Directive shall be in any case without prejudice to the recognized function of the national judges to establish, under a case-by-case evaluation performed on factual bases, according to the national civil substantive law and the relevant civil procedural law, whether a judicial action is manifestly abusive or unfounded.
Amendment 186 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 1
1. ‘public participation’ means any statement or activity by a natural or legal person expressed or carried out in the exercise of the right to freedom of expression and information on a matter of public interest, and preparatory, supporting or assisting action directly linked thereto. This includes complaints, petitions, administrative or judicial claims and participation in public hearings;
Amendment 191 #
(b) activities of a person or entity in the public eye or of public interest, except whether the sole purpose of a statement or activity concerning such a person or entity is to satisfy the curiosity of a particular audience regarding the details of a person’s private life;
Amendment 206 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – introductory part
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – introductory part
3. ‘abusive court proceedings against public participation’ mean court proceedings brought in relation to public participation that are fully or partially unfounded and have as their main purpose to prevent, restrict or penalize public participation. Indications of such a purpose can bare:
Amendment 231 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point b
Article 4 – paragraph 2 – point b
Amendment 233 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 2 a (new)
Article 4 – paragraph 2 a (new)
2 a. When the claimant or associated entities have initiated concurrent or previous court proceedings against the same or associated defendants in another Member State involving the same cause of action , the existing relevant rules on Lis pendens and related actions shall apply.
Amendment 246 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 1
Article 7 – paragraph 1
Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that a court or tribunal seised of court proceedings against public participation may accept that non- governmental organisations safeguarding or promoting the rights of persons engaging in public participation may take part in those proceedings, either in support of the defendant or to provide information, providing that they have a qualified interest in the case under national law.
Amendment 276 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 12
Article 12
Amendment 310 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 18 – paragraph 1
Article 18 – paragraph 1
Amendment 316 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 19 a (new)
Article 19 a (new)
Article 19 a Relations with the Regulation (EU) No. 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council This Directive shall be considered lex specialis with respect to Regulation (EU) No. 1215/2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. For matters not specifically covered in this Directive, the said Regulation shall apply.
Amendment 332 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 21 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 21 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1 a. The Commission shall exempt a Member State from transposing this Directive where the Member State concerned demonstrates that the existing national legislation at the time of the entry into force of the Directive already achieves the objectives set out therein.To this end, the Member State shall transmit a communication to the Commission within one year of the entry into force of this Directive. Member States may, in any event, introduce or mantain more favourable provisions than the guarantees provided for in this Directive against manifestly unfounded and abusive legal proceedings in civil matters.