On 4th October, 1957, a man-made machine forche first time overrode the age old law proclaiming that everything that goes up must come down. Fifteen months later a means was developed of circumventing the earth's attraction. In September, 1959, the moon was reached and on 12th April, 1961, Major Gagarin orbited the Earth in a space capsule. In the short period of four years man's advance in space has been more rapid than the most sanguine forecaster has dared to predict, and it is now realized that a new phase in the history of mankind of exploration and development has begun in some ways comparable to, but vastly exceeding these in scope, the conquest of the sea and the air. Nobody can visualize the impact the conquest of space is going to have on life on this planet, but it becomes clearer every day that a process of change has started more profound and more sweeping than any which has overtaken the world since the foundation of the modern world.

The prolific growth of international intercourse and concomitant litigation in recent years has greatly increased the need for liberal and efficient procedures of international co-operation in civil litigation. The country in which the litigation is pending must make efficacious and flexible provision for the performance of necessary acts abroad, while the country in which the acts are to be performed should do whatever possible to eliminate unreasonable obstacles and to provide proper co-operation. Unfortunately, however, the procedures in many countries fail to meet these reasonable requirements.

Effectiveness is in essence the expression of the relation between the facts and what is considered as law at a certain moment. This relation can be seen in two ways: on the one hand, the factual circumstances can be completely in accordance with the law in force at a certain moment; on the other hand, there can be a divergence between the two elements. If the first case arises there is no real problem. It is completely different, however, when there is tension between the law and the facts. Such tensions are inherent in every community, even in highly-developed ones. For every community is continuously moving. Due to the repeatedly changing factual circumstances this change is based on the always altering relations between the interests of the members of a community. Moreover, new facts ask for modification of the old rules or creation of new rules.