Mass Harm in Europe

This book comprises an in-depth and broad comparative law study on the meaning of tort law in mass harm cases in Europe, examining this phenomenon in the context of 12 different case studies in 12 European jurisdictions: Belgium, England and Wales, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Slovenia, Spain and the Netherlands. To meet the objectives of this analysis, this book’s scope is not limited to an analysis of substantive tort law only, but also includes procedural law aspects and the shift of compensation beyond tort law. It marks a novelty in the common core tradition by mapping out procedural (im)possibilities of damages recovery in mass harm cases, thereby giving a clearer picture of what tort law can de facto mean in mass harm cases. Included are four general contributions that provide more context on the settlement of these types of mass harm cases. These contributions cover the role of the judge; mass harm from a law and economics perspective; alternative compensation schemes; and funding class actions. Overall, this book represents the first study to provide such a broad and comprehensive overview of what is likely to be the common core in the settlement of mass harm cases through private law in Europe.


With contributions by Clémence Abitbol (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France), Tomas Arons (Utrecht University, the Netherlands), TT Arvind (University of York, United Kingdom), Ewa Bagińska (University of Gdańsk, Poland), Ursula Connolly (University of Galway, Ireland), Eugenia Dacoronia (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece), Matthias Dangl (Federal Ministry of Justice, Austria), Matthew Dyson (University of Oxford, United Kingdom), Michael Faure (Erasmus University Rotterdam; Maastricht University, the Netherlands), Matteo Fermeglia (Hasselt University, Belgium), Dominique dos Santos Ferreira (University of Münster, Germany), Steve Hedley (University College Cork, Ireland), Andrew Higgins (University of Oxford, United Kingdom), Emmanuel Jeuland (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France), Natalia Karczewska-Kamińska (Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Poland), Artuur Keukeleire (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Georg E Kodek (Vienna University of Economics and Business; Supreme Court, Austria), Paola Monaco (University of Trieste, Italy), Damjan Možina (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia), Pedro del Olmo García (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain), Sarah Popp (University of Münster, Germany), Julia Rechtman (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France), Rianka Rijnhout (Utrecht University, the Netherlands), María José Santos Morón (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain), Anthony J Sebok (Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, United States), Judith Skillen (University of Nottingham, United Kingdom),
Astrid Stadler (University of Konstanz, Germany), Larissa Vanhooff (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Albert J Verheij (University of Groningen, the Netherlands), Louis Visscher (Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands), Kim Watts (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Britt Weyts (University of Antwerp, Belgium), Pim GJ Wissink (University of Groningen, the Netherlands) and Paulina Wyszyńska-Ślufińska (University of Gdańsk, Poland).


Tomas Arons is Professor of Financial Law and Collective Redress at Utrecht University and Senior Legal Counsel at the Dutch Shareholders Association (VEB), The Hague, the Netherlands. He regularly publishes in Dutch and international law journals, as well as in book series on (international) financial and company law matters. Furthermore, he teaches the post-academic legal professionals courses on liability law and collective redress at the Grotius Academy.

Rianka Rijnhout is Professor of Institutions, Conflict Resolution and Private Law at the research cluster Empirical Legal Research into Institutions for Conflict Resolution and Utrecht Centre for Accountability and Liability Law. Since 2019, she has been Director of the research cluster. She is a deputy judge in the district court of Overijssel and chairs the Standardisation Working Group of The Personal Injury Council. She is an editorial board member of Tijdschrift Vergoeding Personenschade, Overheid en Aansprakelijkheid and Utrecht Law Review.