The Metamorphoses of Civil Justice and Civil Procedure: The Challenges of New Paradigms—Unity and Diversity

In 1975, Mauro Cappelletti predicted a profound transformation in the area of civil justice. In his view, the complexity of contemporary societies required new and enhanced methods of dispute resolution since the traditional means were increasingly insufficient to address societal (and even civilizational) challenges. It is questionable, however, whether this transformation has indeed occurred. In order to evaluate Cappelletti’s prediction, the present contribution addresses a selection of changes in the area of civil justice that have occurred since Cappelletti’s prediction and tries to identify the driving forces of change. Subsequently it identifies seven main transformation areas in civil procedure, evaluating both their present impact on civil justice and their possible future effects. The relevant areas are (1) Transformation by borrowing from national and transnational sources; (2) Transformation by technological modernization; (3) Transformation by the reorganization of courts and a redefinition of court functions; (4) Transformation by the establishment of a multi-dimensional procedure for civil cases; (5) Transformation by the pursuit of alternatives to litigation; (6) Transformation by the collectivization of decision-making processes; and (7) Transformation by ‘dejudicialization’ (privatization, outsourcing) of judicial tasks. The contribution serves as an introduction to the papers collected in the present volume, written by authors from a wide variety of jurisdictions in Europe and around the globe.