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Turning Point: China First Recognizes Japanese Bankruptcy Decision
This post is written by Guodong Du and Meng Yu and published at China Justice Observer. It is reproduced here by kind permission of the authors.
Key takeaways:
- In September 2023, the Shanghai Third Intermediate People’s Court ruled to recognize the Tokyo District Court’s decision to commence civil rehabilitation proceedings and the order appointing the supervisor ((2021) Hu 03 Xie Wai Ren No.1).
- This marks not only the first time that China has recognized a Japanese court’s decision in a bankruptcy procedure, but also the first time that China has recognized a Japanese judgment.
- The case establishes a legal precedent for cross-border bankruptcy decisions, demonstrating that prior non-recognition patterns between China and Japan in civil and commercial judgments may not apply in such cross-border scenarios.
- While not resolving the broader recognition challenges between the two nations, this acknowledgment sends a positive signal from the Chinese court, hinting at potential future breakthroughs and fostering hope for improved legal cooperation.
Disentangling Legal Knots: Intersection of Foreign Law and English Law in Overseas Marriages
Written by Muhammad Zubair Abbasi, Lecturer at School of Law, Oxford Brookes University (mabbasi@brookes.ac.uk)
Introduction:
In a recent judgment Tousi v Gaydukova [2024] EWCA Civ 203, the Court of Appeal dealt with the issue of the relevance of foreign law to the remedy available under English law in respect of an overseas ceremony of marriage. Earlier the High Court had held that the foreign law determines not only the validity or invalidity of the ceremony of marriage but also the ramifications of the validity or invalidity of the ceremony. The Court of Appeal disagreed and reiterated the rule that lex loci celebrationis is limited to the determination of the validity or invalidity of the ceremony of marriage. Therefore, English law will apply to provide a remedy or relief upon the breakdown of the relationship of the parties to a marriage ceremony that took place abroad.
Egyptian Supreme Court on the Enforcement of Foreign Judgments – Special Focus on the Service Requirement
I . Introduction
Egypt and its legal system occupy a unique position within the MENA region. Egyptian law and scholarship exert a significant influence on many countries in the region. Scholars, lawyers, and judges from Egypt are actively involved in teaching and practicing law in many countries in the region, particularly in the Gulf States. Consequently, it is no exaggeration to say that developments in Egyptian law are likely to have a profound impact on neighboring countries and beyond, and warrant special attention. Read more
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Crossroads in Private International Law Seminar Series, University of Aberdeen
In April, the Aberdeen Centre for Private International Law and Transnational Governance will be relaunching its Crossroads in Private International Law research seminar series. 
It will feature both online and hybrid events.
Out Now: Dominelli, Regolamento Bruxelles I bis e US jurisdiction in personam
Stefano Dominelli (Università di Genova) has just published a book titled Regolamento Bruxelles I bis e US jurisdiction in personam: riflessioni e proposte su condivisioni valoriali, influenze e osmosi di metodi with Editoriale Scientifica. The book is written in Italian but also features conclusions in English.
The author has kindly shared the following summary with us:
The book analyses the basic principles of the EU’ and US international civil procedure in contract and tort law. The investigation shows how both systems are partly inconsistent with their respective premises – of legal certainty, on the one hand, and fairness and justice, on the other. The juxtaposition of the dogmatic approaches and their contextualisation in the light of the law in action makes it possible to reconstruct a common and shared principle which shapes solutions in both systems – that of the necessary existence of a minimum connection between the jurisdiction and the case. This conclusion opens up, to a limited extent, to a conceptual rapprochement between legal systems and to reflections on possible legal transplants that respect the characteristics of the local legal culture.
The whole book is available open access under this link.
Call for Papers: XXII Conference of Young Scholars of International Legal Studies, University of Ferrara
On 4–5 December 2025, the Department of Law at the University of Ferrara will host the XXII edition of the Conference of Young Scholars of International Legal Studies, dedicated to “The Principle of Good Faith in International and European Union Law”.
The organizers have issued a call for papers open to scholars of public and private international law and EU law, who are currently enrolled in a PhD program or who have obtained their PhD no more than five years ago.
To apply, authors must submit an abstract (no more than 600 words), in either Italian or English, along with a curriculum vitae, by 22 June 2025, to the following email address: giovaniinternazionalisti2025@gmail.com.
Further information is available here.