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RabelsZ 86 (2022): Issue 3

The latest issue of RabelsZ has just been released. It contains the following contributions:

OBITUARY

Jürgen Basedow: Ulrich Drobnig *25.11.1928 †2.3.2022, 571–576, DOI: 10.1628/rabelsz-2022-0052

ESSAYS

Daniel Gruenbaum: From Statehood to Effectiveness: The Law of Unrecognised States in Private International Law, 577–616, DOI: 10.1628/rabelsz-2022-0053

One of the functions of private international law (PIL) is to determine the law that governs a legal relationship. Yet what occurs when the rules designated by PIL emanate from an entity that has not been recognised as a state by the government of the forum? This article aims firstly to identify and describe the major prevailing approaches to applying the law of unrecognised states in contemporary PIL practice. It then critically appraises the principal reasons justifying the application of foreign law despite it emanating from unrecognised states. The article finally argues that applying the law of unrecognised states reveals the potential for PIL to grapple with non-state rules and with interactions of normative orders of all different sorts, regardless of their state pedigree.

Matthias Fervers: Die Drittwirkungen der Forderungsabtretung im Internationalen Privatrecht, 617–643, DOI: 10.1628/rabelsz-2022-0054

Third-Party Effects of Assignments of Claims in Private International Law. – Although Art. 14 Rome I Regulation addresses the relationship between the assignor and the assignee as well as the relationship between the assignee and the debtor, there is still no provision as to the third-party effects of assignments. The question of what law should govern these third-party effects is, correspondingly, a subject of considerable discussion. While some propose that the law governing the assigned claim should be applicable, others suggest that third-party effects should be governed by the law that applies to the contract between the assignor and the assignee; the current prevailing opinion assumes that third-party effects should be governed by the law of the habitual residence of the assignor. This article demonstrates that a limited possibility for a choice of law for assignor and assignee is the most appropriate solution.

Christoph Wendelstein: Der Handel von Kryptowährungen aus der Perspektive des europäischen Internationalen Privatrechts, 644–686, DOI: 10.1628/rabelsz-2022-0055

The Trading of Cryptocurrencies from the Perspective of European Private International Law. – The rules in the Rome I Regulation are used to ascertain the applicable law in cases of trades in cryptocurrencies. However, these are only partially appropriate for a predictable determination of the applicable law. While in B2B and C2C cases of “stationary” trading of cryptocurrencies via Crypto-ATMs the law at the location of the ATM still provides a predictable legal system, this is not the case for online trading with crypto-brokers or via crypto exchanges. Especially in cases of online trading via crypto exchanges, a further complication results from the fact that such platforms allow their users to trade legally under a pseudonym – in line with the historical notion of cryptocurrencies. This may complicate or even prevent the determination of the applicable law. The resulting “vacuum” is to some extent filled by the technical design of the transaction through the use of smart contracts. However, this does not dispense with the question of applicable law. The article examines these and other questions and points out possible solutions de lege lata.

EU Becomes the First Party to Accede to the 2019 Hague Judgments Convention

Earlier this week, the Council of the European Union has adopted the decision for the EU to accede to the 2019 Hague Judgments Convention (which, in accordance with Art. 27(1) of the Convention, binds all Member States except Denmark). Once a second party either ratifies, accepts, or approves, or accedes to the Convention, it will enter into force one year after the deposit of the instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by that second State (Art. 28(1)). More information is available here.

CERIL Report Reviews Cross-Border Effects in European Preventive Restructuring

The independent think tank Conference on European Restructuring and Insolvency Law (CERIL) has published its latest Statement and Report 2022-2 on Cross-Border Effects in European Preventive Restructuring. As EU Member States implement the EU Preventive Restructuring Directive (2019/1023), CERIL has identified and assessed the benefits and shortcomings of applying the EU Insolvency Regulation 2015 (EIR 2015) to govern the cross-border effects of proceedings in national preventive restructuring frameworks. In the absence of an adequate framework for these new preventive restructuring proceedings, the CERIL Report and Statement formulate recommendations to the EU and national legislators.

Three Ways Forward

To date, no tailor-made framework exists which could adequately and effectively facilitate the cross-border effects of these preventive restructuring proceedings. To resolve the legal uncertainty resulting from the lack of a clear regulatory framework, CERIL suggests the following three lines of action. Firstly, as the European Commission will review the application of the EIR 2015 by 27 June 2027, it is recommended that this review critically assesses the adequacy of the EU legislator’s approach laid down in the EIR 2015 and tailor it to also cover in detail these restructuring proceedings.  Secondly, CERIL welcomes any early, if not immediate, action of the European Commission towards the adoption of a special cross-border framework to include restructuring proceedings in the EIR 2015, either as a separate chapter or take the form of a separate regulation. Thirdly, CERIL invites all Member States to timely review their cross-border frameworks to enable and/or facilitate the recognition of foreign preventive restructurings. A European rescue culture, endorsed by Directive (2019/1023), should be complemented by an instrument to adequately provide legal effects of any restructuring for creditors and shareholders, wherever they are located.

About CERIL and its project on Cross-Border Dimensions of Preventive Restructuring Proceedings

The Conference on European Restructuring and Insolvency Law (CERIL) is an independent and voluntary non-profit organisation of presently 85 members (conferees), consisting of insolvency practitioners, judges, and academics representing 30 European countries and reflecting a diverse array of national insolvency systems and legal traditions.

In January 2022, CERIL commenced a new project led by Prof. Stephan Madaus (Member of the CERIL Executive, University of Halle-Wittenberg, Germany) and Prof. em. Bob Wessels (CERIL Chair, University of Leiden, the Netherlands). This project addresses the policy issues of identifying (and possibly selecting) the regulatory cross-border framework for the new procedural options introduced in most EU Member States when implementing preventive restructuring frameworks flowing from Directive (2019/1023). CERIL studied the role of the EIR 2015, the Brussels Ibis Regulation, and the current national cross-border laws of Member States. The reporters worked with contributions of a large group of scholars and insolvency practitioners (Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Spain, The Netherlands).