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REFLECTIONS ON RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN AFRICAN PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW
I. INTRODUCTION
This is the second symposium relating to private international law in Africa to be hosted on this blog, following a series that has run consistently since 2 February 2026. The first symposium, which focused on private international law in Nigeria, took place on 14 December 2020 and was jointly hosted on Afronomics and this blog. It was organised by Professor Richard Frimpong Oppong and me.
Professor Beligh Elbalti and I are deeply grateful to the scholars who agreed to participate in this symposium at short notice, including Dr Solomon Okorley, Dr Theophilus Edwin Coleman, Dr Elisa Rinaldi, Miss Anam Abdul-Majid, Mr Kitonga Mulandi, Dr Boris Awa, and Dr Abubakri Yekini.
The idea for this second symposium originated with my dear colleague, Professor Beligh Elbalti, and I am thankful to him for involving me in the leadership and organisation of this project. The symposium finds its true genesis in a larger edited volume we are currently preparing on the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments in Africa, which examines developments across no fewer than twenty-six African jurisdictions. Read more
Protection of Forced Heirs and International Public Policy
Written by Matteo Mangone, PhD candidate in Private Law at the University of Turin
Protection of Forced Heirs and International Public Policy: A Comparative Analysis of Germany and Italy in Light of the Bundesgerichtshof Judgment of 29 June 2022
1. The German Approach
The Bundesgerichtshof (Federal Court of Justice), in its judgment of 29 June 2022, affirmed the following legal principle: the protection of mandatory heirs pertains to German public policy and, consequently, pursuant to Article 35 of EU Regulation No. 650/2012, it is possible to disregard the lex successionis designated under Article 22 of the same Regulation whenever its application does not concretely guarantee mandatory heirs a level of protection at least equivalent to that ensured by German inheritance law. Read more
Online Symposium on Recent Developments in African PIL (VII) – South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal orders the return of a child under the Hague Child Abduction Convention
As part of the second online symposium on recent developments in African private international law, we are pleased to present the seventh an final contribution, kindly prepared by Solomon Okorley (University of Johannesburg, South Africa), which examines a decision of the South African Supreme Court of Appeal ordering the return of a child under the Hague Child Abduction Convention.
South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal Orders the Return of a Child under the Hague Child Abduction Convention: Marital Status of Parents not Important in Determining the Child’s Habitual Residence
News
HCCH Monthly Update: April 2026
Meetings & Events
From 30 March to 1 April, the Experts’ Group (EG) on Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) held its fifth meeting. Pursuant to its mandate, the EG continued to make progress in its study of the jurisdiction and applicable law issues raised by the cross-border use and transfers of CBDCs, including the desirability and feasibility of a possible future instrument on these issues, with particular attention to their use in payments with a cross-border or international element. More information is available here.
Consensual Justice in Focus: Reflections from the First ASGiC National Congress
On 16–17 April 2026, the elegant setting of Villa Ruspoli in Florence hosted the First National Congress of ASGiC – the Society for the Study of Consensual Justice, titled Giustizia e cooperazione: il valore del consenso (Justice and Cooperation: The Value of Consent). Marked by a large and engaged participation, the event offered a valuable opportunity for both the Society’s members and a wider community of scholars and practitioners to reflect on the role of consent in contemporary conceptions of justice.
The Congress opened with introductory remarks by the Society’s President, Silvana Dalla Bontà, who set out the themes and objectives guiding the initiative. Against this backdrop, the keynote lectures delivered by Tommaso Greco, Andrea Simoncini, and Filippo Danovi developed a first, coherent reflection on consensual justice, identifying a variety of core concepts – trust, consent, justice, solidarity, Constitution, language, and dialogue – that are likely to orient the Society’s future research and activities.
Out now: Multinationals and Human Rights in Asia
Multinationals and Human Rights in Asia
Edited by Jason Ho Ching Cheung and Kazuaki Nishioka
This book investigates the availability in Asian jurisdictions of civil remedies against multinational businesses for human rights abuses.
It assesses whether the norms of the 2011 UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights have taken root in Asia by first considering the international state of play. It then presents case studies of corporate governance and human rights in Asia, before examining emerging issues, and considering how Asia has dealt and can deal with corporate responsibility in connection with those matters. By way of conclusion, the book offers an action plan for implementing the UN Guiding Principles in Asia.