News

The High Court has refused to strike out the first representative action brought under Article 80 UK GDPR, allowing the Good Law Project's claim concerning alleged failures to respond to data subject access requests to proceed to trial.

The UK Competition Appeal Tribunal has certified collective proceedings against Apple concerning its iCloud storage services, allowing Which? to represent millions of UK consumers in one of the largest digital competition claims in the UK.

Maria José Azar-Baud contributed a chapter to the newly published Tratado de Direito do Ambiente – Volume III, Livro II, a collective work exploring the relationship between environmental law and other legal disciplines.

Le 12 juin 2026, je participerai à la conférence Collective Redress & Litigation Funding CEE à Varsovie, un rendez-vous européen consacré aux actions collectives, au contentieux transfrontalier et à l'accès à la justice.

I share insights on the evolving expectations surrounding collective redress and class action litigation in the latest publication featured on CDR News.

Honoured to contribute to the International Collective Redress Conference organised by the UK Bar Council alongside leading judges, academics, and practitioners from across Europe. The discussions explored the evolving framework of collective litigation, the implementation of the EU Representative Actions Directive across Member States, and emerging procedural innovations such as the French “sanction civile pour faute lucrative”.

Bulgaria’s transposition of the Representative Actions Directive marks a key milestone in the development of European collective redress. By introducing a specialised procedural framework, strengthening the role of qualified entities, and enabling coordinated cross-border actions, the reform contributes to a more structured and operational EU enforcement landscape.

An engaging panel discussion at the Perfect Law conference brought together leading experts to explore the evolution of collective redress and the rise of new litigation hubs. The event underscored the importance of international collaboration and ongoing dialogue in shaping the future of global class actions.

The 2026 David Bederman Symposium brought together leading scholars and practitioners to examine how national justice systems contribute to global justice. Through keynotes and panel discussions, the event explored innovations in rights enforcement, access to justice, and the future of transnational legal frameworks.

At the CompLaw Private Enforcement Conference, discussions highlighted the growing importance of collective actions in ensuring effective compensation for victims of competition law infringements. The panel explored the balance between public and private enforcement, as well as the challenges of coordinating large-scale, cross-border litigation.

On 27 January 2026, the Spanish Supreme Court adopted a Plenary Non-Jurisdictional Agreement proposing systematic mediation in pending “Trucks Cartel” cassation appeals. The measure, aimed at managing mass competition damages litigation, raises key issues regarding ADR voluntariness, judicial sustainability and the architecture of private enforcement in the EU.

In a landmark ruling (ECLI:NL:RBDHA:2026:1344), the District Court of The Hague held that the Netherlands failed to meet its climate obligations under Article 8 ECHR. The judgment notably requires the inclusion of aviation and maritime emissions in national climate accountability, signalling a major shift in how state responsibility is defined.

On 26 January 2026, the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal authorised a £656 million opt-out collective action against Valve Corporation to proceed to trial. The claim alleges anti-competitive practices linked to Steam, the dominant PC gaming platform, and is brought on behalf of up to 14 million UK consumers who purchased PC games or related content.

The Scottish Civil Justice Council consultation on introducing an opt-out regime for civil claims closed on 23 January 2026. The proposal would allow group claims without active consent from class members and could extend beyond competition law, potentially transforming the litigation landscape in Scotland and influencing wider UK civil procedure.

I am pleased to share my article published in ThoughtLeaders4 Competition Magazine (Issue 11, November 2025). It examines how EU Member States have transposed the Representative Actions Directive (EU) 2020/1828, revealing a landscape of minimum harmonisation and significant procedural divergence. The article highlights key implications for collective redress and cross-border representative actions across the EU.

I am pleased to contribute to the presentation of the Cercle des Juristes’ report on the rational treatment of serial litigation. This collective work highlights the shortcomings of existing group actions and puts forward concrete proposals for building a more effective procedural framework.

I am pleased to have contributed to a special issue on the renewal of group actions in labour law, offering a critical and comparative analysis of recent reforms to group actions in French law following the DDADUE Act of 30 April 2025.

I had the opportunity to join the panel “Collective Momentum: Legal Frameworks and Procedural Innovation in Group Actions” at the IMN Litigation Finance International Conference in London. The discussion highlighted the rapid evolution of funding for collective, representative and group actions, as well as key legal and procedural developments shaping the future of mass claims, competition disputes and ESG litigation.

I had the pleasure of speaking at the conference on the Concentration of Cross-Border Litigation at the University of Toulouse Capitole. I discussed the growing role of collective actions in shaping international economic disputes, highlighting parallel cases across countries involving major digital platforms and the shared pursuit of fair and symmetrical justice for victims worldwide.

On 6 november 2025, I had the occasion to participate, in Sweden, at the Emerging practices and Remaining dilemmas in European Collective redress’ vent organized by The Swedish Network for European Legal Studies Grateful thanks to Eva Storskrubb Antonina Bakardjieva Engelbrekt for their kind invitation.