Towards a European Private Law? A Review Essay

Date01 June 1994
DOI10.1177/1023263X9400100204
AuthorTon Hartlief
Published date01 June 1994
Subject MatterArticle
Ton Hartlief*
Towards a European Private Law? A Review Essay
Some reflections on:
P.-C. Muller-Graff (ed.), Gemeinsames Privatrecht in
der
Europiiischen
Gemeinschajt, Nomos, 1993,500 pages, hardback, 148 DM
De Ly, Europese Gemeenschap en privaatrecht, Tjeenk Willink, 1993, 63 pages,
paperback, f30
E.H. Hondius, Naar een Europees burgerlijk recht, pages 1-31 and
Keus, Europees privaatrecht. Een bonte lappendeken, both in Preadvies
Vereniging voor Burgerlijk Recht 1993, Vermande, 1993, pages 31-82, paperback
f29.50
§1. Introduction
1. The study of private law faces a new challenge: the creation of a new European
private law or rather, perhaps, a Community private law.
It
is a well-known fact that
on 26 May 1989 the European Parliament adopted a Resolution expressing the desire
for a European private law code. 1Although opinions differ as to the desirability and
feasibility of regulating private law at a European level, the European dimension of
private law is nevertheless novel. This development has been treated extensively, most
notably in non-English language literature. Since not all practitioners
of
private law, let
alone practitioners
of
other legal disciplines, have a very clear idea about the questions
which may arise in this context, and Dutch scholarly writers only recently began paying
attention to European private law, I will discuss a number of key questions on the basis
*Senior Lecturer in Private Law, Universityof Limburg (NL). I am indebted to Professor Gerritvan
Maanen and Dr Madeleine van Rossum for their valuable comments and useful suggestions and to
Louise Rayar for her translation.
1. Pb EC 1989, CI58/400.
166 MJ 1 (1994)

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