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As provided for in the coalition government agreement, the Cabinet has just adopted a bill introducing class action in Luxembourg consumer law.
This new legal procedure particularly to facilitate access to justice for consumers. Consumption patterns have changed considerably in recent years. With the increase in B to C transactions, the appearance of new consumption patterns and the evolution of technical progress, the risk of mass damage occurring has greatly increased. Like its German, Belgian and French counterparts, Luxembourg will therefore also introduce class action with a view to ensuring better protection of consumers' rights, while providing the necessary guarantees with regard to the rights of the opposing party.
This new instrument will allow consumers to act together through a single procedure and representative, instead of seeing several individual legal actions being accumulated. The Ministry of Consumer Protection has ensured that the provisions of the collective action are part of the Luxembourg legal tradition. As a result, the government has been working on providing effective safeguards to avoid possible abuse and to provide the necessary legal certainty for consumers and professionals.
The introduction of class action aims to not only ensure an efficient administration of justice, but also provide an egalitarian and coherent legal response for each legal dispute (depending on the consumers and the damages concerned), ensuring better visibility of the litigation for the professional and reducing legal costs for the different parties.
The government has also tried to give an important role to the amicable resolution of consumer disputes by proposing an out-of-court settlement procedure adapted to collective disputes and which should make it possible to reach an agreement between the parties concerned.
