Views
Paris, the Jurisdiction of Choice?
On January 17th, the President of the Paris Commercial Court (Tribunal de commerce) inaugurated a new international division.
The new division, which is in fact the 3rd division of the court (3ème Chambre), is to be staffed with nine judges who speak foreign languages, and will therefore be able to assess evidence written in a foreign language. For now, the languages will be English, German and Spanish, as one juge speaking Spanish and two speaking German are currently on the court.
In an interview to the Fondation de droit continental (Civil law initiative), the President of the Court explained that the point was to make French justice more competitive and attract international cases. It also made clear that France was following Germany’s lead, where several international divisions were established in 2009 in Hamburg and Cologne.
French Commercial Courts
It should be pointed out to readers unfamiliar with the French legal system that French commercial courts are not staffed with professional judges, but with members of the business community working part-time at the court (and for free). In Paris, however, many of these judges work in the legal department of their company, and are thus fine lawyers.
Also, French commercial courts (and French civil courts generally) virtually never hear witnesses, so the issue of the language in which they may address the court does not arise.
Some issues
So, the new international division will be able to read documents in several foreign languages. However, nothing suggests that parties or lawyers will be able either to speak, or to write pleadings, in any other language than French. Lawyers arguing these cases will still need to file their pleadings in French, and thus to translate them in English beforehand for their clients. Furthermore, the interview of the Court’s President seems to suggest that using a foreign language will not be a right for the parties. Quite to the contrary, it seems that it will not be possible if one of the parties disagrees, and demands documents be translated in French.
Will that be enough to attract additional commercial cases to Paris?
I wonder whether introducing class actions in French civil procedure would have been more efficient in this respect.
For the full interview of the Court’s President, see after the jump.
News
Out Now: 3rd Edition of Ostendorf, Internationale Wirtschaftsverträge
Internationale Wirtschaftsverträge edited by Patrick Ostendorf (Berlin University of Applied Sciences) but otherwise exclusively written by practitioners occupies a unique position with the German literature on international transactions. It is undeniably aimed at practitioners, featuring a great number of check lists, English sample clauses, and practical tips. Accordingly, most of the book is structured around specific elements of international contracts such as penalties (ch. 6), indemnities (ch. 7), limitations of liability (ch. 8), force majeure (ch. 10), choice of law (ch. 13) and so on. In addition, the book features a number of cross-cutting chapters dedicated to particular types of contracts (ch. 18–23). But despite this hands-on approach, the book’s authors reflect on, and draw from, a wealth of academic material, which they condense into immediately applicable guidance.
Although coming out a mere five years after the previous edition, the third editions contains significant updates to most chapters in light of Brexit, Covid 19, Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the updates to Incoterms (2020) and the ICC Arbitration Rules (2021), and some significant legislative activity in Germany and Europe, e.g. with regard to international supply chains. Of course, these rapid developments make the book all the more useful for German lawyers navigating the high seas of international transactions.
ArbMetaBlock2023 Conference, Ghent, 26 May 2023
At the ArbMetaBlock2023 Conference leading experts in technology and dispute resolution will discuss the impact of blockchain, the Metaverse, and Web3 on arbitration. These concepts have become part of the conversation in the arbitration community, but few understand their true significance and potential impact.
Panelists will discuss the impact of blockchain and the Metaverse on arbitration, the changing role of lawyers and arbitration institutions, and the effect of new technology on arbitration fundamentals during our full-day event.
Confirmed speakers include Mihaela Apostel, Pedro Arcoverde, Elizabeth Chan, Paul Cohen, Dirk De Meulemeester, David Earnest, Elizabeth Zoe Everson, Anna Guillard Sazhko, Wendy Gonzales, Emily Hay, Cemre Kadioglu Kumptepe, Creguta Leaua, Matthias Lehman, Niamh Leinwather, Aija Lejniece, Maud Piers, Colin Rule, Sean McCarthy, Sophie Nappert, Ekaterina Oger Grivnova, Pietro Ortolani, Amy Schmitz, Takashi Takashima, David Tebel, Leandro Toscano, and Dirk Van Gerven.
The event is organized by the Center for the Future of Dispute Resolution at the University of Ghent in collaboration with leading organizations, including ArbTech, Arbitrate.com, Cepani, Cepani40 CyberArb, MetaverseLegal, and UNCITRAL.
Diversity & Inclusiveness In International Arbitration: Hybrid event on 24 April 2023
The School of Law of the University of Aberdeen is organising a hybrid even on Diversity & Inclusiveness In International Arbitration: Challenges, Progress and Excuses on Monday 24 April (13.00 – 14.15 British Summer Time).
Despite the broadly accepted desirability and value of diversity in international arbitration, statistics show that very little changes in the appointment practices in international arbitration. Tribunals remain largely non-diverse – with the exception of a growing number of female arbitrators. In this context, there is a clear need to reconceptualize the approach to diversity efforts, starting with the questions guiding the diversity debate, the parameters of success and the methods of their realization.
The speaker is Fahira Brodlija.
The event is free. Please contact Mr Georgi Chichkov for more information at georgi.chichkov@abdn.ac.uk or enrol here.