Private Law Theory

ABSTRACT
European Union (EU) digital space private law harnesses both public and private enforcement in the pursuit of its policy goals. This article explores whether this part of EU private law is supported by a coherent enforcement architecture and how this architecture could be improved so as to make effective use of public and private enforcement tools. It takes stock of the enforcement landscape across EU digital space private law, categorizing various EU measures according to their approach to enforcement and seeking to explain the differences between them. The article also examines what happens when the same rule can be enforced through both public and private law means, focusing on the interaction between the actors involved, notably regulatory agencies and administrative courts, on the one hand, and private law courts, on the other hand. This analysis highlights the lack of sufficient cross-area and crossactor coordination in enforcement matters, raising concerns about whether the EU’s current enforcement policy for digital space private law is effective in preventing and remedying regulatory violations and whether it is in line with the EU law principles of effectiveness, proportionality, and dissuasiveness. The article concludes with a plea for a holistic approach to the public and private enforcement of EU digital space private law.

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Olha O Cherednychenko, The Public and Private Enforcement of EU Digital Space Private Law, European Review of Private Law, volume 33, issue 5/6 pp 1073-1102 (2025).