The development of a genuine European Area of Freedom, Security and Justice in the field of civil justice has implied the implementation of important normative measures, mainly focused on International Civil Procedure Law. Applicable Law questions have attracted less interest. Nevertheless there are significant Regulations and Directives containing conflict-of-law rules, aimed at promoting the compatibility of domestic rules, improving certainty as to the law applicable, as well as predictability in the outcome of any litigation (in order to avoid forum shopping).However, this commendable process faces several problems that can undermine the aforementioned goals.

One of the most significant challenges, which may face the uniform European conflict-of law rules, relates to the lack of a common solution in relation to the application of foreign law, due to a variety of different practices and solutions in the Member States. This implies that national authorities may reach a different outcome after applying the same conflict-of-law rule of a European origin. Such different treatment of uniform rules is the origin of great confusion for individuals and businesses. Moreover, this can lead to lack of both predictability and confidence in the result. This situation can create a real barrier to the proper functioning of the internal market, a problem that has already been detected by the EU institutions.
This Project aims to contribute to the solution of these problems, by analyzing the core issue related to the application of every system of conflict-of-law rules: the application of foreign law - a matter which affects both judicial and non-judicial authorities (as well as those affected by national law and European Regulations.).