Support for the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law

Recommendation 363 (1963)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate on 10th May 1963 (8th Sitting) (see Doc. 1576, report of the Legal Committee).

The Assembly,

Recalling Recommendation 270 (1960) on an increase of governmental contributions to the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law ;

Noting that this Recommendation has been only partially effective ;

Recognising that the Institute's activities in the field of private law represent an important contribution to the work of European unification and deserve the support of the Council of Europe, particularly since the work of the Institute has been the source of several European Conventions or draft conventions ;

Welcoming the decision of the Committee of Ministers to associate the Institute with the work of the ad hoc Committee on Legal Co-operation set up by Resolution (62) 41 ;

Considering that the financial resources of the Institute are too small to enable it to accomplish all the work demanded of it, in particular its work in co-operation with the Council of Europe for the unification of private law ;

Considering that all member States benefit from this co-operation but that member Governments other than the Italian Government make only a small contribution to the Institute's expenses ;

Noting that the Statute of the Institute provides five categories of annual contributions for Governments to choose from, ranging from 2,000 to 10,000 Swiss francs,

Recommends to the Committee of Ministers

a that it should invite member Governments whose annual contribution to the Institute is in one of the lower categories to consider raising it to one of the higher categories ;

b that it should invite member Governments to assume responsibility for the travelling and subsistence expenses of the representatives they send to meetings of the Governing Council and Committees of Experts of the Institute ;

c that it should authorise the Secretary-General to hold the consultations with the Institute for which provision is made in Article 6 of the Agreement of 12th January 1954 between the two bodies, with a view to determining, subject to the powers of the Committee of Ministers in budgetary matters, an equitable reimbursement of the expenses incurred by the Institute for its past assistance to the organs of the Council of Europe and to its Secretariat.