Thе InterLex project is co-funded by the Justice Programme of the European Union (2014-2020) under Grant Agreement No.800839.
What is InterLex
InterLex was a EU-funded project coordinated by the University of Turin, involving five European-wide academic institutions, a software development company specialising in legal informatics, and a Lawyers Association. The aim of the two-year project, which started in September 2018, was to develop a platform for providing information, decision support and training on private international law.
Background
After the Treaty of Amsterdam came into force on 1 May 1999, the legislative powers for judicial cooperation in civil and commercial matters was transferred to EU institutions and private international law was henceforth regulated primarily by means of EU regulations adopted by the Council and the Parliament. The European PIL provisions strive to harmonise the following issues:
1. which state court has jurisdiction in private matters having cross-border implications,
2. which state law is applicable in such matters, and
3. under which conditions can a foreign decision be recognised and enforced in another Member State.
Scientific research on PIL reveals the need for improved understanding of the interaction between European and national laws on PIL, as well as commonalities and differences between different PIL instruments at the national and international level. The need to improve the application of PIL is particularly intense in the domain of Internet Law. PIL issues are involved in many Internet Law cases, issues such as contracts, consumer protection, torts, and data protection. Moreover, the global dimension of today’s information society generates many new complex legal issues pertaining to Internet-related PIL. The development of computational models of PIL can enable a deeper understanding of the logic of PIL instruments, of overlaps, inconsistencies and gaps, and can support both the application of PIL regulation and their reform. The InterLex platform is intended to use such technologies to identify which legal system(s) have jurisdiction in a particular case, the law of which state is applicable, and retrieve relevant legal materials.
Objectives
i) Capacity building of legal professionals, improving knowledge of legislation and case law in the domain of Internet-related private international law where cross-border judicial cooperation is required;
ii) Help ensure that the legal frameworks and regulations linked to judicial cooperation are in line with the EU acquis and relevant case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union;
iii) Increase awareness of judges, legal practitioners and policy-makers of judicial cooperation issues;
iv) Increase legal awareness of economic operators in the digital economy, and help them identify potential legal issues and access relevant materials;
v) Provide free service, mainly directed to legal professionals and law students, but also accessible to all EU citizens.