The United Kingdom has left the EU and therefore does not need to adopt of Directive (EU) 2020/1828 on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers. Ireland has a similar legal background and remains part of the EU. Its adoption of the Directive marks one of the first clear divergences between the UK and Ireland and indeed the rest of the EU in the post-Brexit consumer acquis. However, the UK has introduced a collective procedure for consumers in competition law that can be opt-out and financed by third party funders. There is burgeoning high profile litigation in this area that encompasses consumer claims involving unfair practices and unfair terms. This can provide interesting insights into how wider consumer class actions might flourish given the right funding conditions and the option of bringing opt-out class actions. Ireland does not yet have the conditions to make it an attractive venue for class actions.

About the Speaker:

Geraint Howells is Executive Dean for Business, Public Policy, and Law at the University of Galway.  Previously he was Professor of Commercial Law, at Manchester University, where he remains a visiting professor.  He has been Dean of Law at the City University of Hong Kong and Head of the Law Schools in Manchester and Lancaster. He was called to the bar in 2002 through a special route for distinguished academics and was awarded an LLD in 2014.  He is a former President of the International Association of Consumer Law. 

*CPD credits are available upon application and subject to accreditation by the Law Society of Hong Kong (currently pending).