Conventions & Instruments
On 1 January 2025, the 2005 Choice of Court Convention entered into force for Switzerland. At present, 36 States and the European Union are bound by the 2005 Choice of Court Convention. More information is available here.
On 12 January 2025, the 2007 Child Support Convention entered into force for Cabo Verde. At present, 52 States and the European Union are bound by the 2007 Child Support Convention. More information is available here.
The fourth issue of 2024 of the Rivista di diritto internazionale privato e processuale (RDIPP, published by CEDAM) was just released. It features:
Francesca C. Villata, Professor at the University of Milan, On the Track of the Law Applicable to Preliminary Questions in EU Private International Law [in English]
Silenced, if not neglected, in (most) legislation and practice, the issue of determining the law applicable to preliminary questions is a constant feature in the systematics of private international law (“p.i.l.”).
The Mexican Academy of Private International and Comparative Law (AMEDIP) is holding a webinar on Thursday 30 January 2025 at 14:30 (Mexico City time – CST), 21:30 (CET time). The topic of the webinar is: From the Old to the New Private International Law: Contexts, Objectives, Methods and Practice and will be presented by HE Ambassador Mario J. A. Oyarzábal (in Spanish). Read more
The 26th Volume of the Japanese Yearbook of Private International Law (Kokusai Shiho Nenpo) published by the Private International Law Association of Japan (Kokusai Shiho Gakkai) (hereinafter “PILAJ”)has recently been released.
This new volume features the following table of content (all links direct to the papers’ English abstracts)
Part 1 – The Status and Development of Private International Law from a Global Perspective
Corporate Climate Liability in Private International Law (in English)
Marc-Philippe WELLER and Madeleine Petersen WEINER Read more
Over the past 19 years, Professor Symeon C. Symeonides (Alex L. Parks Distinguished Professor of Law, Dean Emeritus) has been providing scholars, researchers, practitionners and student with a comprehensive and extensive compliation of Parivate International law bibliogrphy.
The 2024’s compilation (Private International Law Bibliography 2024: U.S. and Foreign Sources in English) includes 58 books and 427 journal articles, covering a wide range of topics within private international law (conflict of laws) and related fields.
The bibliography addresses key areas such as prescriptive jurisdiction, extraterritoriality, federal-state conflicts, and specific aspects of arbitration. It also encompasses legal issues related to foreign relations and international human rights, providing a valuable reference for those studying or working in these domains.
This compilation serves as a significant resource for legal scholars and practitioners, offering a thorough overview of the literature in private international law and its associated fields.
Access to the bibliography is available on Prof. Symeonides’ SSRN page here.
I would like to take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Prof. Symeonides for his unwavering commitment and remarkable contributions. His bibliography continues to be a cornerstone of legal research and a testament to the enduring importance of meticulous scholarship.
Today (31-December 2024), FAMIMOVE 2.0. is coming to an end after having accomplished all of its goals and created a solid network of experts. The project’s full name is Families on the Move: The Coordination between international family law and migration law and is an international project co-funded by the European Commission under the JUST-2022-JCOO program. For more information, click here.
The project aimed to improve the protection of migrant children and families by bringing actual practice more in line with EU goals and values, such as the protection of fundamental rights and best interests of the child. It sought to provide more effectiveness to EU objectives through a better coordination of instruments in overlapping fields, such as Regulations in private international law in family law matters and migration law rules.
Since its inception in 2001, the annual survey on Chinese judicial practice in private international law, published by the Chinese Journal of International Law, has served as a valuable source of information on Chinese practice in private international law, particularly during periods when case law was not readily available (notably prior to 2013). The first annual survery, titled ‘Private International Law in the Chinese Judicial Practice in 2001’, appeared in Vol. 2(1), 2003, and was prepared by Professors Huang Jin and Du Huangfang. However, in its early years, the survey was not published on a regular basis. Indeed, in addition to the 2001 survey, only three others were published between 2005 and 2014: the survey for the year 2002 (published in 2005), for 2003 (published in 2008), and for 2006 (published in 2009).
Since 2015, the regular publication of the survey has been ensured by Professor He Qisheng of Peking University Law School under the title “Chronology of Practice: Chinese Practice in Private International Law”. (For previous announcements on this blog, see the posts for 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. Annual surveys for the years 2013 to 2018 are also available on Professor He’s SSRN page.) Professor He’s dedication to maintaining and expanding the annual survey has been instrumental in ensuring it remains an indispensable resource for the field, while making information on private international law in China readily accessible to non-Sinophone researchers. Read more
The latest volume (Volume 4) of the Ius Comparatum series, which includes the general reports as well as the national and special reports from the General Congresses and Thematic Congresses of the International Academy of Comparative Law, along with other publications related to the Academy’s activities, has been published. This volume focuses on the Localization of Damage in Private International Law, edited by Prof. Olivera Boskovic (Université Paris Cité).
The book addresses the complex issue of the localization of damage in private international law, a challenge that has long puzzled legal scholars and practitioners. This comparative work brings together contributions from different jurisdictions to address the many issues raised, as outlined in the book’s blurb below:
Localisation in private international law of torts is a notoriously difficult question. How do you localize financial or moral damage? What about latent damage? Should damage in the context of cyber-torts be localized differently? The great variety of tortious actions gives rise to endless difficulties ranging from banal situations involving material damage to climate change. Trying to find suitable solutions requires answering many difficult questions, such as the very definition of damage within the meaning of private international law rules, the influence of various considerations such as foreseeability, protection of the claimant, and the remedy sought. The contributions in this volume address these questions and more from the perspectives of 17 different countries, from Austria to Venezuela.
On Thursday 5 December 2024, a group of private international lawyers gathered in Melbourne and online for the launch of the Australasian Association of Private International Law (AAPrIL).
AAPrIL was founded in 2024 by lawyers and academics in Australia and New Zealand who are engaged in private international law. AAPrIL’s aim is to bring together people committed to furthering understanding of private international law in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region.
The launch was held at the offices of Corrs Chambers Westgarth in Melbourne. After networking and drinks, the formalities were opened by Cara North, Corrs Special Counsel and AAPrIL Treasurer, who would be known to many following the blog for her work on the HCCH Judgments Project. Cara introduced Jack Wass, New Zealand barrister and AAPRIL’s New Zealand Vice-President, who is co-author of The Conflict of Laws in New Zealand and who was Master of Ceremonies.
The event featured addresses from two of the most influential lawyers in private international law issues from either side of the Tasman Sea.
The Honourable Dr Andrew Bell, Chief Justice of New South Wales, gave a comprehensive pre-recorded address, speaking to the importance of the discipline and the growing number of judgments dealing with cross-border issues in Australia. His Honour has been deeply engaged in private international law for decades; he his author of Forum Shopping and Venue in Transnational Litigation and a co-author of Nygh’s Conflict of Laws in Australia, and acted as counsel in many of Australia’s most significant private international law cases until his appointment to the New South Wales Supreme Court. Chief Justice Bell is the inaugural Patron of AAPrIL.
The Honourable David Goddard, Judge of the Court of Appeal of New Zealand, then delivered a live online address that also spoke to the importance of the discipline. His Honour advocated for the continued modernisation of domestic laws to harmonise approaches to private international law problems between legal systems, encouraging governments to adopt instruments of the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH). Justice Goddard is perfectly placed to speak to the subject: he was the Chair of the Diplomatic Session of the HCCH that adopted the 2019 HCCH Judgments Convention, Vice-President of the Diplomatic Session that adopted the 2005 Choice of Court Convention, and a member of the drafting committee for that Convention. Read more
On 5–6 December 2024, 18 private international lawyers from Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore came together at the University of Melbourne for the 2024 Asia-Pacific Colloquium of the Journal of Private International Law (JPIL).
The colloquium was the first since 2018, when it had been held in Japan. The 2024 event was expertly hosted by Professor Richard Garnett and Professor Ying Khai Liew of the University of Melbourne Law School, and held at University House at UniMelb’s Parkville campus. Read more