Article 4 Membership — Appointment

The group shall be composed of up to 20 members.

The members shall be appointed by the Director-General of DG Justice, Freedom and Security from specialists with outstanding competence in the area of civil law, and in particular contract law. The appointment of members shall be made in such a manner as to ensure, as far as possible, an adequate balance in terms of range of competencies, geographical origin and gender.

The members shall be appointed in a personal capacity and shall act independently and in the public interest.

The group shall include experts from the following categories:

• scientific and research organisations, academia,

• legal practitioners,

• experts representing the civil society.

Members of the group shall be appointed for a mandate ending on 26 April 2012.

Members may not designate an alternate to replace them, except with the agreement of the Commission.

Members who are no longer capable of contributing effectively to the group’s deliberations, who resign or who do not comply with the conditions set out in paragraph 3 of this Article, or Article 339 of the Treaty, may be replaced for the remainder of their term of office.

Members shall sign an undertaking to act in the public interest and a declaration indicating the absence or existence of any interest which may undermine their objectivity.

The names of members shall be published in the Register of Commission expert groups and on the Internet site of DG Justice, Freedom and Security. The names of members shall be collected, processed and published in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001.

Members who do not wish to have their names disclosed may apply for derogation from this rule. The request not to disclose the name of a member of an expert group shall be considered justified whenever publication could endanger his or her security or integrity or unduly prejudice his or her privacy.