Improving collective redress in Europe: implementing the Representative Actions Directive

This article analyses some of the main features of the Representative Actions Directive and discusses their implications for existing collective redress procedures in selected European countries—Poland and France. The article argues that concerns remain as to whether the mechanism envisaged under the Directive will achieve its policy objectives. The article contends that whilst the Directive may challenge the existing framework of collective redress in some Member States, the legislative revision process may offer opportunities for those states. The article ends with a reflection on what the Directive means for England and Wales and its own domestic procedures. It concludes that policy makers need to rethink the current English approach and adopt a more ambitious collective redress model, particularly in the consumer sphere. The article argues for a new consumer mechanism, in the vein of the competition sector, which would bring improved policy and procedural harmonisation for the benefit of English consumers.