The British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL) is hosting an event on ‘Reframing Jurisdiction: Revising the Grounds or a New Scheme?’ on 11 May 2022.

The event, which is convened by Eva Lein (BIICL / Lausanne), will feature two panels. In the first panel, Richard Fentiman (Cambridge) and Alistair Mackenzie (2TG) will consider proposals presently before the Civil Procedure Rules Committee to make changes to the existing jurisdictional gateways. In the second panel, Adrian Briggs and Andrew Dickinson (both Oxford) will present their own ideas for reform, on which Dame Elizabeth Gloster (One Essex Court) will comment. The panels will be chaired by Marie Louise Kinsler (2TG / Cambridge) and Alexander Layton (20 Essex / KCL).

More information can be found here.

The latest edition of the Dutch journal on private international law (NIPR) includes the following papers:

Editorial:

Van der Grinten, Erkenning en tenuitvoerlegging na Brexit: de rechtzoekende als verliezer / p. 1-6

Abstract

In this editorial the author gives a short overview of the possible instruments to be used for the recognition and enforcement of judgments by Dutch courts in the UK and vice versa after Brexit. The author’s conclusion is that the losers in Brexit, sadly, are the citizens of both states.

 

Articles

Henckel, Cryptovaluta in het conflictenrecht: een verkenning / p. 7-27

Abstract

This article comprises of a reconnaissance of the conflict of laws aspects associated with cryptocurrencies under the Dutch conflict of laws. Cryptocurrencies are founded on new technologies that are unencumbered by borders or central authority, which makes them resistant to traditional rules of private international law that require a connection to a geographic location. A potential major problem may therefore lie in integrating cryptocurrencies into the existing conflict of laws system. This article provides an overview of how cryptocurrencies fit into the existing Dutch conflict of laws system and discusses existing problem areas.

Rosner, The Singapore Convention and commercial mediation in the EU / p. 28-36

Abstract

This article presents an insider’s view of the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (the ‘Singapore Convention’), from the inception phase of the project within the framework of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (‘UNCITRAL’) to the negotiation phase and its adoption in 2018. The article equally presents the main features of this new international system and shows how the EU and its Member States view the enforcement of mediated settlement agreements and the reasons for such positions.

The article continues with a presentation of the current EU legislative framework for commercial mediation, with an emphasis on the enforcement of mediated settlement agreements, including a comparison between the intra-EU regulation of this matter and the enforcement system under the Singapore Convention. A few reflections follow on the compatibility of the two systems, both from a legal viewpoint and from a policy perspective.

The article is concluded with a few general remarks on the role of mediation in resolving (international) commercial disputes.

Foreign pil

Z.D. Tarman, Recognition and enforcement of foreign court judgments in civil and commercial matters before Turkish courts: frequently encountered legal problems and proposed solutions / p. 37-54

Abstract

An efficient process for the recognition and enforcement of foreign court judgments in civil and commercial matters is even more significant in our globalized world for both individuals and businesses involved in cross-border litigation. However, under Turkish legal practice parties repeatedly face certain difficulties arising from disputed procedural issues. This paper examines certain frequently encountered legal problems in Turkish legal practice regarding the recognition and enforcement of foreign court judgments and aims to propose solutions to ameliorate legal practice in Turkey. In this regard the paper gives a general overview of the recognition and enforcement system under Turkish law and addresses the problematic issues in legal practice regarding the competent court, court fees, the simple litigation procedure rules, securities and the exemptions thereto, certain prerequisites and conditions for enforcement, preliminary injunctions as well as the application of the mandatory mediation process to recognition and enforcement proceedings.

In the judgment in Owens Bank, C-129/92, the Court of Justice held that the Brussels Convention does not apply to proceedings in a Contracting State concerning the enforcement of judgment given in civil and commercial matters in non-contracting State.

However, that judgment does not clarify whether the Convention applies to a judgment issued in a Contracting State on the basis of a judgment from a non-contracting State and, maybe more accurately, to proceedings concerning its enforcement in a different Contracting State. Unsurprisingly, as some national procedural laws provide for a possibility to ‘introduce’ a third State judgment within their system through a simplified and/or summary procedure, this question has been debated in the literature.

Read more

We are happy to share the following information on a conference organised by Robin Cupido (University of Cape Town), Benedikt Schmitz (University of Groningen), and Michiel Poesen (KU Leuven), which will be held in Leuven, Belgium, and online on 16 June 2022 (languages: Dutch and Afrikaans), with funding provided by Tijdschrift voor Privaatrecht.

The conveners invite all interested scholars to a one-day conference that explores the interplay between fundamental rights and private international law in the broadest sense. We are looking forward to the following presentations given by young PIL scholars from South Africa, Belgium, and The Netherlands:

• De sociale impact van grensoverschrijdende bedrijfsmobiliteit in Europa (Marilou Hubers, Universiteit Maastricht)
• Asymmetrische forumkeuze en recht op eerlijk proces (Nischa Vreeling, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
• Publieke belangen in het IPR-consumentenrecht (Benedikt Schmitz, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)
• Bevoegdheid in het EU IPR: vehikel voor bescherming van fundamentele rechten? (Michiel Poesen, KU Leuven)
• Persoonlijke identiteit v. nationale constitutionele identiteit: interactie tussen EU recht en internationaal privaatrecht (Hester Kroeze, UGent: Raad van State)
• Die beskerming van migrante kinders in internasionale privaatreg (Robin Cupido, Universiteit van Kaapstad)
• The Right to Freedom of Religion and Conscience: A Comparative Analysis of the Doctrine of Entanglement (Mathabo Baase, Universiteit van Kaapstad)

Special thanks to Prof. Xandra Kramer (keynote speaker), and Prof. Geert van Calster and Prof. Thalia Kruger (chairs of the roundtables).

Please click here for more information and to register.

The Chinese University of Hong Kong’s Centre for Comparative and Transnational Law is organising the seminar From Certainty to Uncertainty – CISG in Hong Kong

On 29th September 2021 at 12:30–2:00pm (Hong Kong Time), the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passed the Sale of Goods (United Nations Convention) Ordinance (Cap. 641) in order to give effect to the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (Vienna, 1980) (CISG). The Ordinance is expected to come into force at some points in 2022. While the CISG seems like a successful international treaty with (currently) 94 State Parties, yet it is not uncommon for international commercial parties to in fact “opt out” or exclude its application as per the mechanism provided for in Article 6. Not all provisions in the CISG are written in a clear manner. Certain concepts contained therein are unfamiliar to lawyers trained in the common law legal tradition. This seminar is to argue that the decision to introduce the CISG into Hong Kong was in fact the decision to introduce uncertainty into an area of law which was once certain with well-supported statutes, case law authorities grounded upon the solid common law foundation, and advanced private international law and dispute resolution mechanisms.

About the speaker:

Dr Poomintr Sooksripaisarnkit is a Lecturer in Maritime Law within the Australian Maritime College, University of Tasmania. He is also holding a position of a Research Associate within the Research Centre for Private International Law in Emerging Countries, University of Johannesburg, South Africa. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Supporting Member of the London Maritime Arbitrators Association. His research interests lie in commercial conflict of laws (private international law), insurance law, private aspects of admiralty and maritime law, carriage of goods by sea, international sale of goods carried by sea, and aspects of international arbitration. His recent publications include: Poomintr Sooksripaisarnkit and Dharmita Prasad (eds), Blurry Boundaries of Public and Private International Law: Towards Convergence or Divergent Still (Springer Nature 2022), Poomintr Sooksripaisarnkit and Sai Ramani Garimella (eds), Contracts for the International Sale of Goods: A Multidisciplinary Perspective (Thomson Reuters Hong Kong Limited 2019), Poomintr Sooksripaisarnkit and Sai Ramani Garimella (eds), China’s One Belt One Road Initiative and Private International Law (Routledge 2018)

CPD credit is available upon application and subject to accreditation by the Law Society of Hong Kong (currently pending).

Register here by 5 pm (Hong Kong time) on 26 May 2022 to attend the seminar.