Civil Liability in Digital Contexts: Transformation of Legal Proof in the EU

This book explores how traditional mechanisms of legal proof are being transformed to address the unique challenges of civil liability in the European Union's digital landscape.

Drawing on a comparative analysis of EU law, Member States' practices, and international approaches, this book provides a comprehensive examination of how burden of proof, standards of proof, and rules of evidence are being strategically recalibrated to maintain the functional equivalence of civil liability in digital contexts. Tracing the theoretical foundations and judicial applications of proof mechanisms across jurisdictions, it analyses how the EU is deliberately deploying these mechanisms as policy levers to reshape civil liability regimes. Through careful examination of emerging legislation and policy instruments, the book reveals how modifications to traditional proof rules serve broader objectives in consumer protection, data security, and AI governance. With particular attention to the challenges of electronic evidence, from AI outputs to blockchain traces, the work offers invaluable insights into evolving standards of admissibility and reliability under EU law, Council of Europe frameworks, and national jurisprudence.

The book will be of interest to researchers in the field of EU law, the law of emerging technologies and civil law.