Views
Service of process on a Russian defendant by e-mail. International treaties on legal assistance in civil and family matters and new technologies
Written by Alexander A. Kostin, Senior Research Fellow at the Private Law Research Centre (Moscow, Russia) and counsel atAvangard law firm
and Valeria Rzyanina, junior associate, Avangard Law Firm
The Decree of the Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court of the Volga District of December 23, 2019 N F06-55840 / 2019 docket numberN A12-20691 / 2019, addresses service of process on the Russian party by the Cypriot court by e-mail and thus the possibility of further recognition of a foreign judgment.
- Factual background
1.1. Within the framework of the court proceedings, the Russian party (the defendant in the Cypriot proceedings) was notified by the Cypriot court by sending a writ of service of process to the known e-mail addresses of the defendant. In order to substantiate the manner of service, the Cypriot court referred to Art. 9 of Decree 5 of the Rules of Civil Procedure (Cyprus), according to which “In any case, when the court considers that, for any reason, the service provided for in Rule 2 of this Decree will not be timely or effective, the court may order a substitute for personal service, or other service, or substitute for a notice of service in any way that will be found to be fair and correct in accordance with the circumstances”.
1.2. After the default judgment of the Cypriot court was rendered, an application for its recognition was lodged with the Arbitrazh Court of the Volgograd Region. In addressing the issue of compliance with the notification rules, the Russian court referred to paragraph 2 of Art. 24 of the Treaty on Legal Assistance of the USSR-Cyprus 1984 on civil and family matters, according to which judgments are recognized and enforced if the party against whom the judgment was made, who did not appear and did not take part in the proceedings, was promptly and duly notified under the laws of the Contracting Party in the territory of which the judgment was made. The foreign judgment in question was recognized and enforced by the Russian court based on the fact that the proper manner of the notification was confirmed by the opinion of experts under Cypriot law. The Ruling of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of March 27, 2020 N 306-ES20-2957 in case N A12-20691 / 2019 left the acts of the lower courts unchanged.
- Analysis of the Decree of the Arbitration Court of the Volga District of December 23, 2019 N F06-55840 / 2019 in the case N A12-20691 / 2019
2.1. At first glance the logic of the Supreme Court and lower courts appears to be flawless. Nevertheless we find it important to correlate the provisions of paragraph 2 of Art. 24 of the 1984 Legal Aid Treaty with the provisions of Art. 8 of the Treaty. Article 8 requires that: “the requested institution carries out the service of documents in accordance with the rules of service in force in its state, if the documents to be served are drawn up in its language or provided with a certified translation into this language. In cases where the documents are not drawn up in in the language of the requested Contracting Party and are not provided with a translation, they are handed over to the recipient if only he agrees to accept them. ”
2.2. In this regard, it should be taken into account that when using the wording “notified under the laws of a Contracting Party,” the Treaty States simultaneously tried to resolve the following situations:
1) where the parties were in the state of the court proceedings at the time of the consideration of the case. In this case, the national (“domestic”) law of the State in which the dispute was resolved shall apply;
2) where the parties were in different states at the time of the consideration of the case. In this case, the provisions of the relevant international treaty shall apply, since the judicial notice is [a] subject to service in a foreign state and, therefore, it affects its sovereignty.
2.3. In this regard, attention should be paid to the fact that under the doctrine and case law of the countries of continental law, the delivery of a judicial notice is considered as an interference with the sovereignty of the respective state. The following are excerpts from case law. Excerpts from legal literature are provided for reference purposes:
- a) “The negotiating delegations in The Hague faced two major controversies: first, some civil law countries, including Germany, view the formal service of court documents as an official act of government; accordingly, they view any attempt by a foreign plaintiff to serve documents within their borders as an infringement on their sovereignty ” – Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft v. Schlunk, 486 U.S. 694 (1988);
- b) “The exclusive competence to carry out acts of state power on its own territory follows from the sovereignty of states. As a rule, a state cannot perform actions of this kind within the borders of another state without violating its sovereignty and, therefore, without violating international law. An act is compatible with this right only if it is permitted by a specific international regulation, for example, if it is agreed in a treaty concluded between the states concerned, or if it is unilaterally accepted by the state in which it is carried out. When the notification is given abroad without permission under international law, this notification is invalid under Swiss domestic law due to its supremacy – Decision of the Swiss Federal Court of 01.07.2008 in case No. BGer 4A_161 / 2008.
- c) “According to the traditional German law approach, delivery is considered to be an act of sovereignty.”- Rasmussen-Bonne H-E., The pendulum swings back: the cooperative approach of German courts to international service of process P. 240;
- d) “From prospective of the Japanese state, certain judicial acts of foreign courts, such as the service of court notices and the receipt of evidence, are considered as a manifestation of sovereignty.”- Keisuke Takeshita, “Sovereignty and National Civil Procedure: An Analysis of State Practice in Japan,” Journal of East Asia and International Law 9, no. 2 (Autumn 016): 361-378
2.4. In light of the above, the interpretation of the Treaty on Legal Assistance of the USSR-Cyprus 1984, according to which a party located in the territory of Russia is subject to notification in accordance with Art. 8 of the Treaty, seems to be preferable.
We welcome further discussion on this intricate matter.
Avoidance of the debtor’s transactions within the framework of a foreign insolvency before a Russian court
Written by Alexander A. Kostin, Senior Research Fellow at the Private Law Research Centre (Moscow, Russia) and counsel atAvangard law firm
and Valeria Rzyanina, junior associate, Avangard Law Firm
(This is a synopsis of an article published in the Herald of Civil Procedure Law Journal N 1/2021 in Russian)
Issues concerning cross-border insolvency rarely arise in Russian case law. For this reason, the Decree of the Arbitrazh Court of the Moscow District dated 22.11.2018 docket number N A40-39791 / 2018 is of particular interest to both practitioners and academics.
- The factual background of case No. ?40-39791 / 2018
A bankruptcy procedure had been introduced at a German court against the Russian individual having the status of an individual entrepreneur under German law. After the opening of this procedure in Germany, the Russian debtor donated an apartment in Moscow to her daughter.
As a consequence of the said acts the bankruptcy trustee of the Russian debtor brought an action before the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court, requesting the following relief: 1) to recognize the judgment of the German court opening the bankruptcy proceedings; 2) to set aside the agreement for donation of the apartment; 3) to enforce the judgment of the German court by prohibiting the alienation of this immovable property upon the completion of the bankruptcy procedure in Germany; 4) to attach the said immovable property in Russia.
On 01.10.2018 the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court (First instance) dismissed the claim relating to the setting aside of the agreement of donation on the ground that that application was not heard by the German court and consequently it could not be resolved within the framework of the procedure for recognition of the German judgment. The court of First instance specifically held that the question relating to the validity of the agreement of donation should be resolved in separate proceedings to be brought before the Russian courts.
In further proceedings the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court (First instance) recognized the judgment of the German court on the opening of the bankruptcy proceedings (decision of 07.12.2018). With reference to Art. 343 of the German Bankruptcy Ordinance and the Russian case Law (docket number No. A56-22667 / 2007), the Russian court acknowledged the existence of reciprocity in relation to the recognition of Russian court judgments in Germany as prescribed by the German Federal Law “On insolvency (bankruptcy)”. The Russian court made an express finding that the foreign court order did not violate the exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy matters, because the debtor’s activities as an individual entrepreneur are regulated by the law of the Federal Republic of Germany (Article 1201 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation – “The law applicable to determination of the ability an individual to engage in entrepreneurial activity”).
However, the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court (1-st instance) rejected the part of the foreign insolvency judgment relating to the prohibition of the debtor to dispose of immovable property until the completion of the insolvency proceedings. In the court’s opinion, in this respect the exclusive competence of the Russian courts and the public order of the Russian Federation had been violated (Article 248 of the Arbitrazh [Commercial] Procedure Code of the Russian Federation). At the same time, the court of first instance also noted that the bankruptcy trustee is entitled to institute separate bankruptcy proceedings against the debtor in order to set aside the agreement for donation of the apartment before the Russian courts.
2. Analysis of case ?40-39791 / 2018
The key question in this situation concerns the correct procedure for setting aside the transaction for the transfer of the immovable property as the restitution of the proper value is dependent on the said action. In turn the success of the said action depends on the following issues: 1) procedural capacity of a bankruptcy trustee, including the issue whether the recognition of a foreign judgment is a prerequisite for granting procedural capacity to a foreign bankruptcy trustee; 2) the law applicable to avoidance of the donation agreement.
2.1. Procedural capacity of a foreign bankruptcy trustee.
In view of the fact that the foreign bankruptcy trustee is regarded as the legal representative of the debtor, his/her powers (including the power to bring an action) are recognized if the corresponding limitation of the capacity of the debtor is recognized in its turn.
Under Art. 1197 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the legal capacity of an individual is governed by his personal law (lex personalis).The personal law of an individual refers to the law of the country of his/her nationality (clause 1 of article 1195 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). Consequently, the personal law of a Russian national is the law of the Russian Federation.
In the present situation, the legal capacity of the Russian debtor had been limited by a foreign judgment. In this case, the legal effect of the foreign judgment on limitation of capacity did not fall within the scope of the applicable substantive law since the judgment was not rendered by the country of his/her nationality. For that reason, the bankruptcy trustee’s legal capacity (including procedural capacity) could not be recognized by virtue of the Russian national conflict of laws rule.
In its turn the possibility of recognition of the foreign judgment on the opening of bankruptcy proceedings is questionable for the following reasons. Although in the present matter the Moscow Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court argues that the capacity of the debtor shall be governed by the German law as the law of the country where the defendant was doing business (Art. 1201 of the Russian Civil Code) it needs to be noted that the capacity of the person to conduct business-related activities arises from general civil legal capacity (Art. 1195-1197 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). Taking into account the above, the said judgment on the opening of the insolvency proceedings appears to be in conflict with the Russian public order.
2.2. Law applicable to avoidance of the donation agreement.
In order to establish that the agreement for donation of the apartment is void the bankruptcy trustee referred to the fact that the apartment forms an integral part of the bankruptcy estate pursuant to paragraph 1 of Art. 35 of the German Insolvency Ordinance, as well as under clause 1 of Art. 213.25 of the Federal Law “On Insolvency (Bankruptcy)”. With reference to the fact that the agreement for donation of the apartment was concluded after the commencement of foreign bankruptcy proceedings against the Russian debtor, the trustee argued that the transaction should be deemed void under Art. 61.2. of The Federal Law “On Insolvency (Bankruptcy)” as a “suspicious transaction”.
In our view application of Art. 61.2. of The Federal Law “On Insolvency (Bankruptcy)” to invalidate the debtor’s agreements within the framework of a foreign insolvency does not seem to be entirely justified due to the following. Due to the fact that the bankruptcy procedure against the Russian debtor had been opened by a German court, the legal consequences of this procedure should also be determined by German law. Another question is whether these legal consequences are recognized in the Russian Federation). In this case, the fact of initiation of bankruptcy proceedings against a Russian national at a foreign court does not provide grounds for the application of Russian bankruptcy law.
In our view the following ways to set aside the agreement within the framework of the foreign insolvency exist.
Primarily, it appears that the donation agreement entered into after the commencement of foreign insolvency proceedings may be regarded as a void transaction under the Russian law due to the fact that it was intended to defraud creditors (Articles 10 and 168 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
Secondly, it could be argued that the recognition of a foreign bankruptcy entails that the effects of that foreign bankruptcy also apply to all actions that took place in the territory of Russia, including the possibility to apply foreign bankruptcy grounds to avoid contracts. However, this line of argument may not be entirely in line with the provisions of the Russian Civil Code under which Russian law applies to contracts in relation to land plots, subsoil plots and other real estate located in the territory of the Russian Federation (paragraph 2 of Art. 1213 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
Conclusion
The Decree of the Arbitrazh (Commercial) Court of the Moscow District dated 22.11.2018 docket number N A40-39791 / 2018 as well as other court findings represent an interesting interplay between the legal provisions relating to the recognition of foreign insolvency and the application of Russian law for avoidance of the debtor’s transactions. In the present matter the Russian court clearly ruled in favor territoriality of foreign insolvency proceedings. However, we remain hopeful that one day the approach will change and the Russian courts will uphold the principle of universality of foreign insolvency.
New Principles of Sovereign Immunity from Enforcement in India: The Good, The Bad, And The Uncertain (Part II)
This post was written by Harshal Morwale, an India-qualified international arbitration lawyer working as an associate with a premier Indian law firm in New Delhi; LLM from the MIDS Geneva Program (2019-2020); alumnus of the Hague Academy of International Law.
Recently, the issue of foreign sovereign immunity became a hot topic in India due to the new judgment of the Delhi High Court (“DHC”) in the case of (KLA Const Tech v. Afghanistan Embassy). The previous part of the blog post analyzed the decision of the DHC. Further, the post focused on the relevance of the United Nations Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property. The post also explored the interplay between state immunity and diplomatic immunity.
This part focuses on two further issues which emanate from the decision of the DHC. Firstly, the post deals with the impact of the consent to arbitrate on immunity from enforcement. Then, the post explores the issue of attachment of state’s property for satisfying the commercial arbitral award against a diplomatic mission.
Consent to Arbitrate: Waiver Of Immunity From Enforcement?
As highlighted in the last post, one of the main arguments of the KLA Const Technologies (“claimant”) was that the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan’s (“respondent”, “Embassy”) consent to arbitrate resulted in the waiver of the sovereign immunity. The DHC accepted the argument and ruled that a separate waiver of immunity is not necessary to enforce an arbitral award in India as long as there is consent to arbitrate. The DHC also stated that this position is in consonance with the growing International Law principle of restrictive immunity while referring to the landmark English case (Trendtex Trading Corp. v. Central Bank of Nigeria).
However, there’s more to the issue than what catches the eye. First of all, the Trendtex case was decided before the English Sovereign Immunity Act (“UKSIA”) came into effect. Therefore, the DHC could have examined the relevant provisions under UKSIA and the more recent cases to track the jurisprudential trend on sovereign immunity under English law. For example, Section 13(2) of the UKSIA recognizes the difference between jurisdictional immunity and immunity from enforcement and requires an express waiver of immunity from enforcement. Even the ICJ has noted the requirement of an express waiver of immunity from enforcement in the Jurisdictional Immunities case. (para 118).
Furthermore, there was an opportunity to undertake a more detailed cross-jurisdictional analysis on the issue. In fact, the issue of arbitral consent as a waiver of immunity from enforcement was dealt with by the Hong Kong Courts in FG Hemisphere v. Democratic Republic Of The Congo. Reyes J, sitting in the Court of First Instance, ruled that consent of the state to arbitrate does not in itself imply the waiver of immunity from enforcement. The ruling on the issue was confirmed by the majority decision of the Court of Final Appeal. The position has also been confirmed by scholars.
However, this position is not the settled one. The DHC’s decision is in line with the approaches adopted in France (Creighton v. Qatar), Switzerland (United Arab Republic v. Mrs. X) that no separate waiver of immunity from enforcement would be required in the existence of an arbitration agreement.
However, the decision made no reference to the reasoning of the cases from these jurisdictions. Regardless of the conclusion, the DHC’s decision could have benefited from this comparative analysis, and there would have been a clearer answer as to the possible judicial approaches to the issue in India.
Attachment of State’s Property for Satisfying an Award Against A Diplomatic Mission
In the current case, the DHC ordered the respondent to declare not only its assets and bank accounts in India but also all its commercial ventures, state-owned airlines, companies, and undertakings in India, as well as the commercial transactions entered into by the respondent and its state-owned entities with the Indian companies.
It is not entirely clear whether the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan’s (“Afghanistan”) properties and commercial debts owed by private Indian companies to the state-entities of Afghanistan would be amenable to the attachment for satisfying the award against the Embassy. To resolve the issue of attaching Afghanistan’s property to fulfill the liability of the Embassy, a critical question needs to be considered – while entering into the contract with the claimant, was the respondent (Embassy) acting in a commercial capacity or as an agent of the state of Afghanistan?
The contract between the claimant and the respondent was for the rehabilitation of the Afghanistan Embassy. The DHC found that the respondent was acting in a commercial capacity akin to a private individual. Additionally, there’s no indication through the facts elaborated in the judgment that the contract was ordered by, or was for the benefit of, or was being paid for by the state of Afghanistan. In line with these findings, it can be concluded that the contract would not be a sovereign act but a diplomatic yet purely commercial act, independent from the state of Afghanistan. Consequently, it is doubtful how the properties of state/state-entities of Afghanistan can be attached for fulfilling the award against the Embassy.
The attachment of the state’s property to fulfill the liability of the Embassy would break the privity of contract between the claimant and the respondent (Embassy). According to the privity of contract, a third party cannot be burdened with liability arising out of a contract between the two parties. Therefore, the liability of the Embassy cannot be imposed on the state/state-entities of Afghanistan because they would be strangers to the contract between the claimant and the respondent.
That said, there are a few well-known exceptions to the principle of privity of contract such as agency, third party beneficiary, and assignment. However, none of these exceptions apply to the case at hand. It is accepted that an embassy is the agent of a foreign state in a receiving state. However, in this case, the contract was entered into by the Embassy, in its commercial capacity, not on behalf of the state but in the exercise of its diplomatic yet commercial function. Afghanistan is also not a third-party beneficiary of the contract as the direct benefits of the contract for the rehabilitation of the Afghanistan Embassy are being reaped by the Embassy itself. Additionally, there is no indication from the facts of the case as to the assignment of a contract between the state of Afghanistan and the Embassy. Therefore, the privity of contract cannot be broken, and the liability of the Embassy will remain confined to its own commercial accounts and ventures.
In addition to the above, there also lacks guidance on the issues such as mixed accounts under Indian law. Regardless, the approach of the DHC remains to be seen when the claimant can identify attachable properties of the respondent. It also remains to be seen if the respondent appears before the DHC and mounts any sort of defence.
Conclusion
There remains room for growth for Indian jurisprudence in terms of dealing with issues such as immunity from the enforcement of arbitral awards. An excellent way to create a more conducive ecosystem for this would be to introduce stand-alone legislation on the topic as recommended by the Law Commission of India in its 176th report. Additionally, the issues such as the use of state’s properties to satisfy the commercial liability of diplomatic missions deserve attention not only under Indian law but also internationally.
(The views expressed by the author are personal and do not represent the views of the organizations he is affiliated with. The author is grateful to Dr. Silvana Çinari for her feedback on an earlier draft.)
News
Nygh Essay Prize in Private International Law
The Australian Branch of the International Law Association is now calling for submissions for the 2024 Nygh Essay Prize in Private International Law.
Issue 1 of Journal of Private International Law for 2024
The latest issue of the Journal of Private International Law was published yesterday It contains the following articles.
Alex Mills, Sustainability and jurisdiction in the international civil litigation market
The sustainability of the global economy, particularly in response to the concerns of climate change, is an issue which impacts many different aspects of life and work around the world. It raises particular questions concerning globalised industries or markets which depend on long distance transportation for their function. This article takes as its focus international civil litigation – the judicial resolution of cross-border disputes – as a particular example of a globalised market in which sustainability considerations are presently neglected, and examines how this omission ought to be addressed. It proposes a modification to English law which aims to ensure that jurisdictional decisions by the English courts take into account their environmental impact – that is to say, the environmental impact of the selection of a particular forum. The article also considers the implications of adopting this change on the position of the English courts in the global litigation marketplace, arguing that the effects are likely to be limited, and it could have an incidental benefit in promoting the development and adoption of communications technologies in judicial dispute resolution.
Saloni Khanderia, The law applicable to documentary letters of credit in India: A riddle wrapped in an enigma?
Despite significantly fostering international trade in India, letters of credit and the determination of applicable law in cross-border disputes arising from the same have received negligible attention from lawmakers. The Indian Supreme Court, too, has failed to use its power to mould the law despite regularly being confronted with disputes on this subject. This paper demystifies India’s conflict of law rules on the law governing disputes on letters of credit by examining relevant judicial trends. It highlights rampant references to the lex fori – and explores reasons why it is considered the “proper law” by being the country possessing the closest and most real contractual connection. It anticipates a “ripple effect” prompting parties to evade Indian courts through choice-of-court agreements preferring a foreign forum or to avoid business with Indian traders insisting on such payment mechanisms. Accordingly, it identifies the need for coherent rules and suggests some solutions that Indian lawmakers should consider.
Frederick Rieländer, The EU private international law framework for civil disputes concerning credit ratings: Exploring the status quo and prospects of reform
This article addresses the EU private international law framework for cross-border disputes concerning credit ratings. It argues that investors harmed by faulty ratings face considerable challenges when enforcing claims against credit rating agencies. These challenges arise not only due to the high standard of proof for damages claims and additional barriers rooted in substantive law but also from the limited territorial reach of the common EU civil liability regime of Article 35a of the amended Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009. Additionally, uncertainties concerning the determination of the concurrently applicable national law and the lack of unified European cross-border collective redress mechanisms in the area of capital markets law compound the problem. Against this background, this article discusses the options for reforming the existing private international law regime to enhance investors’ access to justice in disputes with CRAs.
Tony Ward & Ann Plenderleith Ferguson, Proof of foreign law: a reduced role for expert evidence?
This article considers the position as to proof of foreign law in the English courts in light of the case of FS Nile Plaza v Brownlie [2021] UKSC 45 and the 11th edition of the Commercial Court Guide. We discuss the “old notion” of proof by expert witnesses, the extent to which recent developments displace the traditional role of the expert and enhance that of the advocate, and the dicta in Brownlie concerning the presumptions of similarity and continuity and judicial notice. While welcoming the greater flexibility in the way foreign law can be put before the English court, we argue that the use of oral expert evidence and cross-examination will remain important in at least two types of case: those where the issue of foreign law is complex or novel, and those where the English court does not just need to ascertain the “correct” interpretation of foreign law, but rather predict whether a foreign court would in reality provide appropriate relief in relation to the matter before the court.
Olivera Boskovic, Extraterritoriality and the proposed directive on corporate sustainability due diligence, a recap
Tortious actions brought against companies for the violation of human rights and/or environmental damage have raised important issues of jurisdiction and choice of law. Damage caused abroad by subsidiaries of European companies or the possibility of bringing actions against non-European companies for damage caused outside of the European union have been referred to in terms of extraterritoriality. This paper examines these issues in relation to the proposed directive on corporate sustainability due diligence.
The Brussels IIb Regulation, dealing with proceedings in matrimonial matters, those of parental responsibility and international child abduction cases, is the newest instrument of the European Union in international family law. The article critically evaluates its most significant changes compared to its predecessor, the Brussels IIa Regulation, in the fields of jurisdiction and of recognition and enforcement. In addition, it analyses how the Brussels IIb Regulation optimises the provisions of the 1980 Hague Convention on International Child Abduction between the member states of the European Union. The article argues that the regulation is overall a helpful and welcome addition to international family law because it strengthens the welfare of the child and enhances the practical functionality and normative structure of its predecessor. Nevertheless, scope for further improvements in another recast regulation is identified.
Olga Bobrzy?ska & Mateusz Pilich, Cases of cross-border child abduction in times of populism: a Polish perspective
This article analyses the case law in Poland on matters of the return of children wrongfully removed or retained within the framework of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction during the period of the “populist” government (2020–2022). It takes account of the legislative and judicial developments in the EU and the European Court of Human Rights and of the aims of the Hague Convention. It seeks to ascertain whether the influence of populist reforms and politicisation of the courts has become apparent in the case law of the Polish Supreme Court on international child abduction cases.
Ye Shanshan & Du Tao, The Jurisdiction of China International Commercial Court: substance, drawbacks, and refinement
The wave of setting up international commercial courts has emerged internationally. Following the trend, China established the China International Commercial Court (CICC) in 2018. The CICC exercises consensual jurisdiction and non-consensual jurisdiction over international commercial disputes, and has jurisdiction to support international commercial arbitration. This article analyses the CICC’s criteria for determining international commercial disputes and the specific requirements for each type of jurisdiction based on the relevant provisions and judicial practice of the CICC. In addition, this article identifies the drawbacks of the CICC’s current jurisdiction system, and provides several suggestions for refinement, including the modification and clarification of the criteria for determining the internationality and commerciality of disputes, the removal of restrictions on jurisdiction agreements, the clarification of substantive standards for case transfer, and the expansion of its jurisdiction to support international commercial arbitration.
Gülüm Bayraktaroglu-Özçelik, When migration meets private international law: issues of private international law in divorce actions of Syrian migrants under temporary protection before the Turkish courts
The extended stay of Syrian nationals under temporary protection in Türkiye for more than a decade has caused an increase in their involvement in private law actions before the Turkish courts. Even though their substantive rights have mostly been regulated following their arrival, the private international law legislation has not yet been reviewed. This research, focusing on the most recent judgments of Turkish courts in divorce actions of Syrian migrants identifies important issues of private international law. These include questions on determination of international jurisdiction of Turkish courts, their access to legal aid and the obligation to provide security, questions of applicable law concerning marriage (including the recognition of the marriages validly celebrated in Syria), determination of the law applicable to divorce and the content of Syrian law. The study demonstrates that some of these questions arise because of the ongoing unfamiliarity of Turkish courts with “temporary protection status” as a relatively new concept in Turkish law, whereas others are related to application of general provisions to temporary protection beneficiaries and highlights the urgent need to review the Turkish private international law legislation considering the status of these persons to provide uniformity in court decisions and to ensure predictability.
Research Methods in Private International Law – book and webinars
As some readers will have seen through various other blogs and social media, this month the book Research Methods in Private International Law. A Handbook on Regulation, Research and Teaching, edited by Xandra Kramer (Erasmus University Rotterdam/Utrecht University) and Laura Carballo Piñeiro (University of Vigo) was published. The book is part of the Handbook in Research Methods of Law Series of Edward Elgar Publishing.
“The book seeks to provide insights into the different methodological approaches to private international law from both a regulatory approach and from a research and educational perspective. Established methodologies as well as evolving regulatory and empirical approaches that shape the future of private international law are discussed. To this end, the book is structured in three parts that correspond to three core debates, although they inevitably overlap: (I) the classification of private international law as private law and its interaction with international public law and regulation; (II) inter- and multidisciplinary approaches and research methods; and (III) how private international law helps to frame and address the critical debates of our time as well as the role of legal scholarship and education in shaping the future of private international law.” (Introductory Chapter, p. 1-2).
The book contains 18 chapters written by a team of authors spanning all continents discussing classical themes of private international law and new challenges in regulation, research, and teaching. It includes views from politics, human rights, legal theory, soft law and private regulation, comparative law, empirical studies, economics, EU law making, technology, laymen, feminism, colonialism, as well as university teaching in Mexico, Nigeria and The Netherlands.
Contributors are (in alphabetical order): María Mercedes Albornoz, Adriani Dori, Diego P. Fernández Arroyo, Sai Ramani Garimella, Marco Giacalone, Paola Giacalone, Nuria González-Martin, Christoph A. Kern, Mary Keyes, Patrick Kinsch, Dulce Lopes, Cristina M. Mariottini, Ralf Michaels, Chukwuma Samuel Adesina Okoli, Marta Pertegás, Giesela Rühl, Veronica Ruiz Abou-Nigm, Carlota Ucín, Aukje van Hoek, Christopher Whytock, and Abubakri Yekini.
Further information is available on the publisher’s website here. The Prelims and the introductory chapter by the editors ‘Private international law in a global world: a revival of methodologies and research methods’ are freely accessible here. Critical acclaim by Geert Van Calster (KU Leuven), Yuko Nishitani (Kyoto University), Hans van Loon (former SG Hague Conference on Private International Law) and Symeon C. Symeonides (Willamette University College of Law).
Save the Date! Two launch webinars will take place on:
- 10 September 2024, from 10-12am CET: Research Methods in Private International Law: Views from Regulation, Research and Education (confirmed speakers include Dulce Lopes, Diego Fernández Arroyo, Giesela Rühl, Adriani Dori and Mary Keyes)
- 23 September 2024, from 10-11.30 CET: Research Methods in Private International Law: Educational Perspectives (co-organised by the University of Sydney, moderated by Jeanne Huang; confirmed speakers include Veronica Ruiz Abou-Nigm/Ralf Michaels, Ramani Garimella, Abubakri Yekeni & Chukwuma Okoli and Aukje van Hoek
More details and information on registration will follow soon.
For those interested, a report of an extensive online interview with the editors by Young-OGEMID can be downloaded from the website of Transnational Dispute Management.