European Economic
and Social Committee
International Protection of Adults
Background:
When adults who are not in a position to protect their own interests – due to an impairment or insufficiency of their personal faculties caused by age-related diseases or resulting from a health condition – relocate to another EU country or handle assets, real estate, or medical care abroad, they may encounter numerous legal obstacles.
To date there have been no EU laws specifically addressing the protection of these adults in cross-border situations.
The only legal instrument protecting their interests in such situations has been the Hague Protection of Adults Convention, formally known as the Convention on the International Protection of Adults concluded by the Hague Conference on Private International Law in 2000. It entered into force in 2009.
The Convention is widely considered to be an efficient and flexible private international law instrument, but despite the Commission's efforts to promote its ratification, only 12 Member States have so far become contracting parties. Moreover, although the Convention establishes a basic legal framework applicable internationally, it does not fully harness the potential of the EU's justice system, which thrives on close collaboration among Member States and mutual trust.
In May 2023, the Commission proposed new rules aimed at ensuring that adults are protected in cross-border situations and that their right to be free to make their own choices as regards their person and their future arrangements is respected throughout the EU.
The Regulation proposed by the Commission builds on the rules of the Convention, as well as on existing EU measures in other areas of cross-border civil justice. The Commission has also proposed a Council Decision that would make it mandatory for all Member States to join the Convention.
The two proposals provide for the rules to be uniform and to fill the current gaps and inconsistencies in the legal protection of adults across the EU. They will apply only in cross-border cases and will not change Member States' national substantive laws concerning the protection of adults.
The EESC has welcomed the Commission's proposal but has suggested several changes to make the text fully compliant with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), which, in its opinion, should be the main text of reference.
Key points:
In the opinion, the EESC:
- believes that the proposal could have positive effects on the harmonisation of laws on the protection of persons with disabilities and vulnerable persons, but believes that reference should be made to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) rather than to the Hague Convention; it therefore calls for a substantial revision of the text based on the legal principle of regulatory hierarchy, according to which the CRPD, and in particular Articles 12 and 19 thereof, is the primary legal principle of reference;
- considers that, where the adoption of a legal measure against a person with a disability or a vulnerable person clearly violates human rights and international law, a Member State should be obliged not to recognise such a measure;
- calls for the term "vulnerable adults" to be changed to "adults with disabilities and vulnerabilities" and for monitoring to start three years (instead of ten) after the adoption of the proposal.
The text of the draft opinion can be found here.
Additional information
Section: Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship (SOC)
Opinion number: SOC/779
Opinion type: Optional
Rapporteur: Pietro Vittorio Barbieri
Reference: Referral by the Commission
COM(2023) 280 final 2023/0169 COD
COM(2023) 280 final 2023/0169 COD
COM(2023) 280 final 2023/0169 COD
COM(2023) 281 final 2023/0170 NLE
COM(2023) 281 final 2023/0170 NLE
Date of adoption by section: 21/11/2023
Result of the vote: 78 in favour/0 against/1 abstention
Date of adoption in plenary: 13/12/2023
Result of the vote: in favour/ against/ abstentions
Contacts:
Press officer: Laura Lui
Tel.: 00 32 2 546 9189
email: laurairena.lui@eesc.europa.eu
Administrator: Valeria Atzori
Tel.: 00 32 2 546 8774