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Conflict of Law Rules in the Early 20th Century Ethiopia: A Brief Legal History
Guest post by Bebizuh Mulugeta Menkir, former Lecturer of Laws in University of Gondar, currently working as a Lawyer and Senior National Consultant for a legal reform project. E-mail: babimulugeta@gmail.com
The Ethiopian legal system is characterized by the absence of codified rules on conflict of laws. Though it cannot be considered as the exact period in which conflict of laws have emerged in Ethiopia, some elements of such rules can be found even in the early 1900s, which is long before the modern codes were developed in 1950s and 1960s.
A book written by Mersehazen Woledekirkos titled “Ye Hayagenawe Keflezemen Mebacha:Ye Zemen Tarik Tezetaye Kayehute ena Kesemahute 1896–1922”[1] is a record of historical events that happened in 20th century Ethiopia. One of the records is the “Trade Agreement (1908)” that was signed between Ethiopia and France. This agreement, among others, regulates the adjudication of disputes between Ethiopian and French nationals/dependents. This short piece aims to briefly discuss the salient conflict of laws rules that are incorporated in this trade agreement. Read more
US Supreme Court: Hearing in Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. et al. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos (Mexico). Selling guns comparable to selling beer to teenagers?
Written by Mayela Celis, Maastricht University
The hearing in the case of Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. et al. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos (Mexico) No. 23-1141 took place in March 2025 before the US Supreme Court. We have previously reported on this case here and here. The transcript and the audio files can be found here.
As previously indicated, this is a much-politicized case brought by Mexico against US gun manufacturers. Mexico alleges inter alia that defendants actively assist and facilitate trafficking of their guns to drug cartels in Mexico. Among the claims for relief are: Negligence, public nuisance, defective condition – unreasonably dangerous, negligence per se, gross negligence, unjust enrichment and restitution, violation of CUTPA [Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act], Violation of Mass. G.L. c. 93A [Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act] and punitive damages.
Brexit and PIL – Belgian Supreme Court confirms the application of the 2005 Hague Convention to jurisdiction clauses designating UK courts concluded after 1 October 2015
By Guillaume Croisant (Linklaters LLP)
The United Kingdom deposited an instrument of accession to the Hague Convention of 30 June 2005 on Choice of Court Agreements (the “Convention”) on 28 September 2020. This instrument of accession became effective after the Brexit’s transition period, on 1 January 2021, and gained binding force within the UK legal order following the adoption of the Private International Law (Implementation of Agreements) Act 2020.
As many readers will be aware, a controversy exists regarding the temporal scope of the Convention. It applies to exclusive choice of court agreements concluded after its entry into force for the State of the chosen court and to disputes initiated after its entry into force for the State of the seized court. EU Member States have been bound by the Hague Convention since its approval by the European Union on 1 October 2015, but what about the UK after its withdrawal from the EU?
According to a first viewpoint, reflected in the UK’s instrument of accession, ” In accordance with Article 30 of the 2005 Hague Convention, the United Kingdom became bound by the Convention on 1 October 2015 by virtue of its membership of the European Union, which approved the Convention on that date.”
Conversely, under a second viewpoint (apparently shared by the European Commission in its ‘Notice to stakeholders – Withdrawal of the United Kingdom and EU rules in the field of civil justice and private international law’ dated 27 August 2020, p. 9), the Convention could only apply after the United Kingdom’s ‘independent’ ratification, which occurred on 1 January 2021. If this second perspective were accepted, jurisdiction agreements concluded before this date would not benefit from the mutual recognition system established by the Convention.
In a judgment (in French) dated 27 March 2025 (C.24.0012.F), the Belgian Supreme Court (Court de Cassation/Hof van Cassatie) ruled in favour of the first viewpoint, holding that “The Hague Convention of 30 June 2005 has been applicable to the United Kingdom as a bound State, owing to the European Union’s approval of the Convention, from 1 October 2015 until 31 December 2020, and as a contracting party from 1 January 2021. The argument, in this regard, that the United Kingdom ceased to be bound by the Convention following its withdrawal from the European Union on 1 February 2020, is without legal basis.”
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Conference: Assimilated law – the role and future of retained EU law in the UK (Oxford, 13/14 April 2026)
The following conference announcement was kindly shared with us by Johannes Ungerer (University of Oxford).
At the University of Oxford, a conference on “Assimilated law – the role and future of retained EU law in the UK” will be held on 13 and 14 April 2026. It is jointly organised by Professor Anne Davies and Dr Johannes Ungerer; it is funded by the Institute of European and Comparative Law as part of its 30th anniversary events.
The concept, category or chimaera of assimilated law emerged in the UK after Brexit: when becoming a Non-Member State, the UK chose to retain many EU laws in its domestic legal system, and this body of law has since been labelled ‘assimilated law’. There is an urgent need to explore and understand how assimilated law operates and might develop in future in the UK. Pressing questions concern how assimilated law is to be applied and interpreted and how it and the underlying EU laws might develop and diverge over time. Courts in the UK and on the Continent already had to deal with complex matters arising with regard to assimilated law, so there is a real need to distil and disseminate academic insights. In Lipton, the UK Supreme Court dealt with some initial questions, but they only addressed a small portion of the underlying issues.
The conference will bring together legal scholars and practitioners to establish a common understanding of the practices and challenges regarding assimilated law. The conference will be structured in two parts over the course of one and a half days: first, general questions about assimilated law will be debated, so that common themes, trends, and topics can be explored. Secondly, particularly tricky issues will be addressed which pertain to assimilated law in specific areas.
Further information, including the conference programme, is available here.
JKU Linz: Tenure-Track Position for European and International Civil Procedure Law
Johannes Kepler University Linz is currently advertising a tenure-track professorship in “European and International Civil Procedure Law”.
Out Now: Checa Martínez, Instituciones de estate planning y Derecho internacional privado patrimonial (Marcial Pons 2026)
Miguel Checa Martínez (Kinship Law) has kindly shared the following summary of his latest publication on ‘Instituciones de estate planning y Derecho internacional privado patrimonial’ with us.
