ABSTRACT
It is an exciting prospect and daunting challenge to contribute to this volume. The particular point in time of the progression of the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice (AFSJ) is significant. We are at a crossroads, driving from the end of the long tunnel of the Stockholm Programme1 and turning towards a new landscape of unnamed and streamlined guidelines.2 At this junction, my task is to comment on and analyse the constitutional perspectives, the governance perspectives and regulatory challenges of civil justice as a particular policy area of the AFSJ.3 It is also a particular pleasure to
1 The five-year programme of the European Council for the development of the AFSJ: ‘The Stockholm Programme: an open and secure Europe serving and protecting citizens’, OJ C 115, 4 May 2010, p 1.
