Views
Mutual Trust v Public Policy : 1-0
In a case concerning the declaration of enforceability of a UK costs order, the Supreme Court of the Hellenic Republic decided that the ‘excessive’ nature of the sum (compared to the subject matter of the dispute) does not run contrary to public policy. This judgment signals a clear-cut shift from the previous course followed both by the Supreme and instance courts. The decisive factor was the principle of mutual trust within the EU. The calibre of the judgment raises the question, whether courts will follow suit in cases falling outside the ambit of EU law.
[Areios Pagos, Nr. 579/2019, unreported]
THE FACTS
The claimant is a Greek entrepreneur in the field of mutual funds and investment portfolio management. His company is registered at the London Stock Exchange. The defendant is a well known Greek journalist. On December 9, 2012, a report bearing her name was published in the digital version of an Athens newspaper, containing defamatory statements against the claimant. The claimant sued for damages before the High Court of Justice, Queens Bench Division. Although properly served, the respondent did not appear in the proceedings. The court allowed the claim and assigned a judge with the issuance of an order, specifying the sum of the damages and costs. The judge ordered the default party to pay the amount of 40.000 ? for damages, and 76.290,86 ? for costs awarded on indemnity basis. The defendant did not appeal.
The UK order was declared enforceable in Greece [Athens CFI 1204/2015, unreported]. The judgment debtor appealed successfully: The Athens CoA ruled that the amount to be paid falls under the category of ‚excessive‘ costs orders, which are disproportionate to the subject matter value in accordance with domestic perceptions and legal provisions. Therefore, the enforcement of the UK order would be unbearable for public policy reasons [Athens CoA 1228/2017, unreported]. The judgment creditor lodged an appeal on points of law before the Supreme Court.
THE RULING
The Supreme Court was called to examine whether the Athens CoA interpreted properly the pertinent provisions of the Brussels I Regulation (which was the applicable regime in the case at hand), i.e. Article 45 in conjunction with Art. 34 point 1. The SC began its analysis by an extensive reference to judgments of the CJEU, combined with recital 16 of the Brussels I Regulation, which encapsulates the Mutual Trust principle. In particular, it mentioned the judgments in the following cases: C-7/98, Krombach, Recital 36; C-38/98, Renault, Recital 29; C-302/13, flyLAL-Lithuanian Airs, Recital 45-49; C-420/07, Orams, Recital 55), and C-681/13, Diageo, Recital 44. It then embarked on a scrutiny of the public policy clause, in which the following aspects were highlighted:
- The spirit of public policy should not be guided by domestic views; the values of European Civil Procedure, i.e. predominantly the European integration, have to be taken into consideration, even if this would mean downsizing domestic interests and values. Hence, the court of the second state may not deny recognition and enforcement on the grounds of perceptions which run contrary to the European perspective.
- The gravity of the impact in the domestic legal order should be of such a degree, which would lead to a retreat from the basic principle of mutual recognition.
- Serious financial repercussions invoked by the defendant may not give rise to sustain the public policy defense.
- In principle, a foreign costs order is recognized as long as it does not function as a camouflaged award of punitive damages. In this context, the second court may not examine whether the foreign costs order is ‘excessive’ or not. The latter is leading to a review to its substance.
- The proportionality principle should be interpreted in a twofold fashion: It is true that high costs may hinder effective access to Justice according to Article 6.1 ECHR and Article 20 of the Greek Constitution. However, on an equal footing, the non-compensation of the costs paid by the claimant in the foreign proceedings leads to exactly the same consequence.
- In conclusion, the proper interpretation of Article 34 point 1 of the Brussels I Regulation should lead to a disengagement of domestic perceptions on costs from the public policy clause. Put differently, the Greek provisions on costs do not form part of the core values of the domestic legislator.
In light of the above remarks, the SC reversed the appellate ruling. The fact that the proportionate costs under the Greek Statutes of Lawyer’s fees would lead to a totally different and significantly lower amount (2.400 in stead of 76.290,86 ?) is not relevant or decisive in the case at hand. The proper issue to be examined is whether the costs ordered were necessary for the proper conduct and participation in the proceedings, and also whether the calculation of costs had taken place in accordance with the law and the evidence produced. Applying the proportionality principle in the way exercised by the Athens CoA amounts to a re-examination on the merits, which is totally unacceptable in the field of application of the Brussels I Regulation.
COMMENTS
As mentioned in the introduction, the ruling of the SC departs from the line followed so far, which led to a series of judgments denying recognition and enforcement of foreign (mostly UK) orders and arbitral awards [in detail see my commentary published earlier in our blog, and my article: Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Greece under the Brussels I-bis Regulation, in Yearbook of Private International Law, Volume 16 (2014/2015), pp. 349 et seq]. The decision will be surely hailed by UK academics and practitioners, because it grants green light to the enforcement of judgments and orders issued in this jurisdiction.
The ruling applies however exclusively within the ambit of the Brussels I Regulation. It remains to be seen whether Greek courts will follow the same course in cases not falling under the Regulation’s scope, e.g. arbitral awards, third country judgments, or even UK judgments and orders, whenever Brexit becomes reality.
Gender and Private International Law (GaP) Transdisciplinary Research Project: Report on the kick-off event, October 25th at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
As announced earlier on this blog, the Gender and Private International Law (GaP) kick-off event took place on October 25th at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law in Hamburg.
This event, organized by Ivana Isailovic and Ralf Michaels, was a stimulating occasion for scholars from both Gender studies and Private and Public international law to meet and share approaches and views.
During a first session, Ivana Isailovic presented the field of Gender studies and its various theories such as liberal feminism and radical feminism. Each of these theories challenges the structures and representations of men and women in law, and helps us view differently norms and decisions. For example, whereas liberal feminism has always pushed for the law to reform itself in order to achieve formal equality, and therefore focused on rights allocation and on the concepts of equality and autonomy, radical feminism insists on the idea of a legal system deeply shaped by men-dominated power structures, making it impossible for women to gain autonomy by using those legal tools.
Ivana Isailovic insisted on the fact that, as a field, Gender studies has expanded in different directions. As a result, it is extremely diverse and self-critical. Recent transnational feminism studies establish links between gender, colonialism and global capitalism. They are critical toward earliest feminist theories and their hegemonic feminist solidarity perception based on Western liberal paradigms.
After presenting those theories, Ivana Isailovic asked the participants to think about the way gender appears in their field and in their legal work, and challenged them to imagine how using this new Gender studies approach could impact their field of research, and maybe lead to different solutions, or different rules. That was quite challenging, especially for private lawyers who became aware, perhaps for the first time, of the influence of gender on their field.
After this first immersion in the world of gender studies, Roxana Banu offered a brief outline of private international law’s methodology, in order to raise several questions regarding the promises and limits of an interdisciplinary conversation between Private International Law (PIL) and gender studies. Can PIL’s techniques serve as entry points for bringing various insights of gender studies into the analysis of transnational legal matters? Alternatively, could the insights of gender studies fundamentally reform private international law’s methodology?
After a short break, a brainstorming session on what PIL and Gender studies could bring to each other took place. Taking surrogacy as an example, participants were asked to view through a gender studies lens the issues raised by transnational surrogacy. This showed that the current conversation leaves aside some aspects which, conversely, a Gender studies approach puts at the fore, notably the autonomy of the surrogate mother and the fact that, under certain conditions, surrogacy could be a rational economic choice.
This first set of questions then prompted a broader philosophical debate about the contours of an interdisciplinary conversation between PIL and Gender studies. Aren’t PIL scholars looking at PIL’s methodology in its best light while ignoring the gap between its representation and its practice? Would this in turn enable or obfuscate the full potential of gender studies perspectives to critique and reform private international law?
As noted by the organizers, “although private international law has always dealt with question related to gender justice, findings from gender studies have thus far received little attention within PIL”. The participants realized that is was also true the other way around: although they were studying international issues, scholars working on gender did not really payed much attention to PIL either.
One could ask why PIL has neglected gender studies for so long. The avowedly a-political self-perception of the discipline on the one hand, and the focus on public policy and human rights on the other, could explain why gender issues were not examined through a Gender studies lens. However, Gender studies could be a useful reading grid to help PIL become aware of the cultural understanding of gender in a global context. It could also help to understand how PIL’s techniques have historically responded to gender issues and explore ways to improve them. Issues like repudiation recognition, polygamous marriage or child abductions could benefit from this lens.
It was announced that a series of events will be organized: reading groups, a full day workshop and a conference planned for the Spring of 2020.
If you want to know more about the project, please contact gender@mpipriv.de.
New Book: Recognition of Judgments in Contravention of Prorogation Agreements
Written by Felix M. Wilke, Senior Lecturer at the University of Bayreuth, Germany.
Must a foreign judgment be recognised in which a jurisdiction agreement has been applied incorrectly, i.e. in which a court wrongly assumed to be competent or wrongly declined jurisdiction? Within the European Union, the basic answer is a rather straightforward “yes”. Recognition can only be refused on the grounds set forth in Article 45(1) Brussels Ibis Regulation, and unlike Article 7(1)(d) of the recently adopted HCCH Judgments Convention, none of them covers this scenario. What is more, Article 45(3) Brussels Ibis expressly states that the jurisdiction of the court of origin, save for certain instances of protected parties, may not be reviewed, not even under the guise of public policy.
Why, then, should one bother to read the book by Niklas Brüggemann, Die Anerkennung prorogationswidriger Urteile im Europäischen und US-amerikanischen Zivilprozessrecht (Mohr Siebeck) on the recognition of judgments in contravention of prorogation clauses in European and US-American law? The first and rather obvious reason can be found in the second part of the title. The book contains a concise, yet nuanced overview of the law of jurisdiction agreements in the US (in German). To the knowledge of this author, it has been 12 years since the last comparable work was published (Florian Eichel, AGB-Gerichtsstandsklauseln im deutsch-amerikanischen Handelsverkehr (Jenaer Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft) – which dealt with recognition only in passing and was limited to German and US law). Thus, this new book can be recommended to anyone with sufficient command of the German language who is interested in this particular aspect of US civil procedure, whose concepts – if one even dares to use that term – partly differs from European ideas.
The second and main reason to concern oneself with Brüggemann’s book, however, is his proposition for a new ground of refusal of recognition: a new Article 45(1)(e)(iii) Brussels Ibis for which he even offers a draft. To this end, the author comprehensively analyses jurisdiction agreements within the Brussels Ibis framework. While Article 31(2) Brussels Ibis, one of the main innovations of the Recast, has indeed “enhance[d] the effectiveness of exclusive choice-of-court agreements” (Recital 22 Brussel Ibis), Brüggemann argues that the Regulation still safeguards jurisdiction agreements insufficiently. He points out several situations (e.g. asymmetrical agreements, mere derogation agreements) that Article 31(2) Brussels Ibis does not cover in the first place. He also argues in some detail that the court first seised is allowed to examine the jurisdiction agreement in question with regard to the existence of an agreement and its formal validity; its assessment would be binding upon other courts in line with Gothaer Allgemeine (ECJ Case C-456/11). This in turn would lead to a race to the courts and even to a race between the courts. (The latter metaphor is only partially convincing, for it is unlikely that the judges will intentionally accelerate their respective proceedings in order to “beat” the other court.)
Brüggemann goes on to argue that when it comes to jurisdiction agreements it is contradictory to make an exception to the principle of mutual trust in the lis pendens context but to strictly adhere to it in the recognition context. He demonstrates that, in particular, default judgments by a derogated court pose a significant risk for the defendant – one with which US civil procedure arguably deals more effectively. Alas, this appears to be the only instance in which the author’s comparative analysis, as interesting it is in and of itself, contributes to his broader point. He concludes by pointing out parallels to jurisdiction in insurance/consumer/employment matters (safeguarded at the stage of recognition by Article 45(1)(e)(i) Brussels Ibis) and exclusive jurisdiction (safeguarded at the stage of recognition by Article 45(1)(e)(ii) Brussels Ibis), and by suggesting that a special ground for refusal of recognition would have positive effects on the internal market.
While the abovementioned Judgments Convention is too recent to feature in the book, the author was able to consider its draft in a separate, albeit somewhat oddly positioned, chapter. Conspicuously absent is any specific discussion of the issue of damages for the violation of a choice of court agreement (see this recent post). The omission is certainly justifiable as Brüggemann is only concerned with procedural safeguards for jurisdiction agreements. But maybe such a remedy under substantive law could obviate or at least lessen the need for a separate ground of refusal of recognition? All in all, however, the author has carefully built a compelling case for an addition to Article 45(1) Brussels Ibis.
News
AMEDIP’s upcoming webinar: The Construction of Private International Law – 27 April 2023 (at 14:30 Mexico City time) (in Spanish)
The Mexican Academy of Private International and Comparative Law (AMEDIP) is holding a webinar on Thursday 27 April 2023 at 14:30 (Mexico City time – CST), 22:30 (CEST time). The topic of the webinar is the Construction of Private International Law and will be presented by Prof. Jorge Alberto Silva (in Spanish).
The details of the webinar are:
Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85789687012?pwd=aXlKWFpzb2Qyb2VoNklwMWxyQ082UT09
Meeting ID: 857 8968 7012
Password: AMEDIP
Participation is free of charge.
This event will also be streamed live: https://www.facebook.com/AmedipMX
The University of Bologna Summer School on Transnational Litigation: what you should know about its 2023 edition
[This post has been prepared by Ms. Francesca Albi, J.D. Candidate | Università degli Studi di Verona]
The Summer School on Transnational Litigation has been organized since 2019 within the Ravenna Program on Cross-Border Disputes by the University of Bologna, Department of Juridical Sciences – Ravenna Campus (Italy), under the direction of Prof. Michele Angelo Lupoi.
The organization of its 2023 edition confirms the success this projects continues to enjoy among participants from all over the world, who, over the years, are contributing to build a promising network of Private International Law enthusiasts. Indeed, this project has proven to be a building-bridges catalyst to connect people with the same interests in Private International Law issues: in this sense, this multi-year Summer School actively contributes to the sharing and spread of knowledges and views, which go beyond borders in every possible sense.
In 2023, the Summer School will take place from Monday 17 to Saturday 22 July, both in person at the Faculty of Law (Via Oberdan 1/2) in Ravenna – Italy, and online.
The title, which summarises the hot topics of the courses of this year’s edition, is “Cross-border litigation and international arbitration”. As a matter of fact, the themes dealt with will concern, on one hand, transnational litigation from a wide perspective (i.e., involving climate litigation, cross-border maritime litigation, family and succession Private International Law, civil and commercial litigation), and, on the other hand, the increasingly interesting matter of international arbitration. The full schedule of classes is available and may be downloaded at https://site.unibo.it/transnational-litigation/en/program.
Participants will have the outstanding opportunity to acquire specialised knowledges on these relevant topics of growing importance directly from experts in such matters. In fact, the faculty consists of renowned scholars and legal practitioners, who will offer their experience involving diverse professional backgrounds developed in different States over the world. In detail, the lecturers in this edition are (in alphabetical order) Apostolos Anthimos, Giovanni Chiapponi, Elena D’Alessandro, David Estrin, Marco Farina, Francesca Ferrari, Chris Helmer, Albert Henke, Emma Roberts, Marco Torsello, Stefano Alberto Villata and Anna Wysocka-Bar. Their biographies and professional experience may be consulted at https://site.unibo.it/transnational-litigation/en/faculty.
Registration to the School are now open!
In order to participate, some requirements should be met: applicants must be students or graduate students of a Bachelor (three-years) or Master (five-years) Degree (or equivalent under previous systems) in Law (LMG/01), Legal Services Science (L-14), Political and International Relationships Science (L-36), International Relationships (LM52), or Political Sciences (LM62). Other candidates may also be accepted upon the presentation of the CV which should be show a connection to the topics of the Summer School. Alongside students and post-grad students, also practitioners in legal matters are invited to participate. In this regard, it must be noticed that the Ravenna Bar Association will grant 20 formative credits to Italian lawyers who attend the Summer School.
Registration to the Summer School is possible upon the payment of a fee, whose amount is €250,00 and which does not cover expenses for the accommodation and meals (please, note that registration is considered completed only when the payment of the fee is fulfilled). Applications are open until 6 July 2023 (h 23.59 CET); it is not possible to apply beyond this deadline. The application procedure is described at https://site.unibo.it/transnational-litigation/en/fees-and-forms.
In this regard, it is worth mentioning that, in order to give to one deserving law student or law graduate, who meets specific age requirements, the opportunity to attend the Summer School online free of charge, a call for papers has been launched. It consists in the submission of an originally and previously unpublished paper on a topic concerning transnational litigation and international arbitration. A selection committee, composed by staff and faculty members of the Summer School, will evaluate the papers and will reward the author of the best one through the possibility to attend the full Summer School online without paying the ordinary registration fee. Moreover, the best three papers will be published in the Linkedin Newsletter of the Summer School on Transnational Litigation “Transnational litigation pills”. Every submission is truly appreciated. Detailed information on this call for papers may be found on the website of the Summer School, especially in the section “Fees and forms”.
For any question regarding the application process or logistics, the contact person is Dr. Cinzia Cortesi, Manager of Fondazione Flaminia (master@fondazioneflaminia.it; +39 0544 34345). Otherwise, in order to acquire further information on the project, courses and call for papers, it is possible to contact Prof. Michele Angelo Lupoi, Director of the Summer School (micheleangelo.lupoi@unibo.it) or Francesca Albi, Tutor (francesca.albi@unibo.it).
Further information may be found in the official website of the Summer School at https://site.unibo.it/transnational-litigation/en.
The organization team of the Summer School warmly invites everyone who meets the requirements listed above to apply for the 2023 edition courses, in order to allow as many people as possible the exciting chance to become part of a group of colleagues and friends with the common interest in Private International Law, that is larger and larger every year.
New Journal Announcement: the Chinese Journal of Transnational Law
Wuhan University Institute of International Law, in partnership with global research leader SAGE, is delighted to announce the launch of a new journal “Chinese Journal of Transnational Law”.
The Chinese Journal of Transnational Law is a double-blind peer-reviewed journal that aims to address global challenges from the perspective of transnational law, which is broadly defined to cover international law (public and private), international economic law, comparative law, the interaction between domestic and international law, and any other legal field possessing a cross-border element. This journal embraces relevant submissions from different cultures and regions and attracts readers from the global, regional and Chinese markets. The journal shall be open to not only traditional doctrinal and theoretical legal research on transnational law, but also contextual and inter-disciplinary research. Although focused on contemporary matters in its aspiration to be a forum for the latest debates on transnational legal studies, it also considers submissions inspired by in-depth historical perspectives that cast new light on present developments. The CJTL covers broad topics including but not limited to:
- Innovative transnational dispute resolution, including both state-to-state and private dispute resolution mechanisms and the impact of culture, psychology, language and geopolitics on dispute resolution;
- Transnational trade, investment and economic governance;
- Transnational family law and the wellbeing of children, including surrogacy, child abduction and same sex marriage in the cross-border context;
- Transnational regulation of technology;
- Transnational corporate responsibility and governance;
- Transnational protection of private rights in tort and transactions;
- Transnational law and development;
- Transnational law and global health governance;
- Transnational environment protection and climate change;
- Transnational criminal law;
- Unilateral sanctions, extraterritorial regulations and blocking law.
The Chinese Journal of Transnational Law accepts submissions year round on any topic covered in the journal scope. In the meantime, the journal will publish calls for special issues occasionally. A call for the first special issue is going to be announced soon. You can find more information about this journal and submit your paper here.