Part 2 National and Regional Reports, Part 2.4 Europe: Coordinated by Thomas Kadner Graziano, 50 Ukraine: Ukrainian Perspectives on the Hague Principles

Author(s):  
Vorobey Dmytro

This chapter studies Ukrainian perspectives on the Hague Principles. Ukrainian private international law act, or formally the ‘Law of Ukraine “On Private International Law” ’ (PIL), was adopted on June 23, 2005. As per the Preamble to the PIL, it applies to ‘private [legal] relationships which are connected to one or more legal orders other than the Ukrainian legal order’. According to Article 2 of the PIL, it applies to matters of choice of law, procedural standing of foreign citizens, stateless persons and foreign legal entities, jurisdiction of Ukrainian courts in cases involving foreign parties, execution of letters rogatory, and recognition and enforcement of foreign court judgements in Ukraine. The Ukrainian private international law and specifically the PIL were influenced by the 1980 Rome Convention on the Law Applicable to Contractual Obligations. Although, considering the relative novelty of the Hague Principles, the authority of the courts to refer to the Hague Principles has not been addressed by the higher Ukrainian courts, the courts have frequently referred to the international codifications of contract law such as the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts.

Author(s):  
Þorláksson Eiríkur Elís

This chapter focuses on Icelandic perspectives on the Hague Principles. The constitution of the Republic of Iceland does not contain any provisions on the principles of private international law. Moreover, there is no general act on private international law in force in Iceland. However, legislation on specific aspects of private international law, such as conflicts of the laws of contract and recognition and enforcement of foreign decisions, can be found in Icelandic law. Moreover, individual provisions on recognition and enforcement, jurisdiction, and choice of law can be found throughout Icelandic legislation. The legislative act which applies to contractual obligations in the field of private international law in Iceland is Act No 43/2000 on the law applicable to contractual obligations. There are no other acts that explicitly aim to address choice of law issues other than Act No 43/2000, but individual provisions can be found indicating the choice of law in specific areas of law; otherwise, Icelandic courts will apply general principles to the case at hand. There is currently no revision of Act No 43/2000 under discussion in Iceland.


Author(s):  
Hook Maria

This chapter examines the choice of law rules that determine the law applicable to international contracts in New Zealand, comparing them to the Hague Principles. Private international law in New Zealand is still largely a common law subject, and the choice of law rules on international commercial contracts are no exception. The general position, which has been inherited from English common law, is that parties may choose the law applicable to their contract, and that the law with the closest and most real connection applies in the absence of choice. There are currently no plans in New Zealand for legislative reform, so the task of interpreting and developing the choice of law rules continues to fall to the courts. When performing this task, New Zealand courts have traditionally turned to English case law for assistance. But they may be willing, in future, to widen their scope of inquiry, given that the English rules have long since been Europeanized. It is conceivable, in this context, that the Hague Principles may be treated as a source of persuasive authority, provided they are consistent with the general principles or policies underlying the New Zealand rules.


Author(s):  
Heiss Helmut

This chapter looks at Liechtenstein perspectives on the Hague Principles. Rules on choice of law, including international commercial contract law, have been codified by virtue of the Act on Private International Law 1996 (Liechtenstein PILA). The Liechtenstein PILA does not expressly state that conventions will take precedence over national laws. However, it has been held by the Liechtenstein Constitutional Court that international treaties are of at least equal status to regular national laws and that national law must be interpreted in line with public international law. Moreover, an international convention will often be considered to be a lex specialis and be given precedence over national rules on that ground. Liechtenstein courts will refer first of all to (old) Austrian case law and legal literature when dealing with matters pertaining to the parties’ choice of law. Whenever these sources leave ambiguity to a specific question, Liechtenstein courts may and most likely will consider other persuasive authorities. The Hague Principles may constitute such persuasive authority.


Author(s):  
Girsberger Daniel ◽  
Graziano Thomas Kadner ◽  
Neels Jan L

This chapter presents the General Comparative Report, which addresses, article by article, the Hague (or HCCH) Principles on Choice of Law in International Commercial Contracts of 2015 (the Hague Principles). The General Comparative Report compares the Hague Principles with the state of the law in over sixty jurisdictions worldwide and with supranational rules and soft law principles. It aims to encourage legislators, courts, practitioners, and academics to further develop their domestic private international law systems and possibly benefit hereby from the Hague Principles by consistently and adequately applying, interpreting, and amending domestic, supranational, and regional private international law (PIL) in the context of party choice of law. The chapter then details the structure of the Report and the questionnaire used to address the issues covered by the Hague Principles. It also provides an introduction and a comparative overview of each of the Articles of the Hague Principles.


Author(s):  
Reyes Anselmo

This chapter explores Hong Kong perspectives on the Hague Principles. Hong Kong has no enacted code of private international law rules. In relation to contracts dealing with commercial matters, the choice of law principles of Hong Kong law are largely to be found at common law. Decisions of the English court, in particular, are often cited in Hong Kong as exemplifying the law on a given question. To a lesser degree, principles may be found in statute. While Hong Kong judges must look to case law to discern relevant choice of law principles, nothing prevents them from also having regard to the Hague Principles and holding that one or more articles therein accurately reflect Hong Kong law. Indeed, articles of the Hague Principles can be referred to by Hong Kong judges as accurate statements of present day Hong Kong law, as foundations for the refinement of existing common law rules, or as indications of how Hong Kong choice of law principles may be extended to deal with novel situations.


Author(s):  
Kobeh Marie-Claude Najm

This chapter evaluates Lebanese perspectives on the Hague Principles. In Lebanon, private international law rules in respect of international commercial contracts are not codified. There are statutory rules governing certain areas of private international law, some of which might be relevant in cases where international commercial contracts are litigated. This is the case for rules on international jurisdiction (Articles 74–80 Code of Civil Procedure, hereafter CCP), recognition and enforcement of foreign decisions (Articles 1009–1024 CCP), international arbitration (Articles 809–821 CCP) and the application of foreign law (Articles 139–142 CCP). Given the rarity of private international law statutory rules, and specifically the absence of statutory choice of law rules for international commercial contracts, it was up to the courts to shape conflict of law rules for these contracts.. In this respect, Lebanese courts do not have the authority to refer to the Hague Principles as persuasive applicable rules, ie to use them to interpret and supplement the applicable rules and principles of private international law. Nevertheless, it should be noted that Article 4 CCP invites the courts, in the absence of statutory law, to rely on ‘general principles, custom and equity’.


Author(s):  
Graziano Thomas Kadner ◽  
Meyle Hannes

This chapter describes Swiss perspectives on the Hague Principles. Switzerland is a Contracting State to the Hague Convention of 15 June 1955 on the Law Applicable to International Sale of Goods. For contracts other than commercial sales, the applicable law is determined by the Swiss Federal Act on Private International Law (PILA). It covers jurisdiction, international civil procedure, applicable law, and the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. The Swiss PILA therefore constitutes an all-inclusive, comprehensive codification of private international law. For many issues, the rules contained with the PILA are already in conformity with those in the Hague Principles. Where the Hague Principles cover issues that have not yet been explicitly addressed by the PILA, such as choice of non-State rules in Article 3 of the Hague Principles, or conflicting choice of law clauses in standard forms in Article 6(1)(b) of the Hague Principles, the legislator may very well take the Hague Principles into consideration when amending the PILA. In fact, the Swiss legislator regularly takes inspiration from international and foreign law when amending the law or covering new issues.


Author(s):  
Torremans Paul

This chapter examines three main questions of private international law that arise from petitions for financial relief: the jurisdiction of the English court; the power to order relief after a foreign divorce/dissolution, annulment or legal separation; and the recognition and enforcement of foreign decrees or orders in relation to financial relief. It first considers the jurisdiction of the English court under the general jurisdictional rules, the Brussels/Lugano system, Maintenance Regulation, and Lugano Convention before discussing the powers of the English court to grant financial relief after a foreign divorce/dissolution, annulment or legal separation. It also analyses the choice of law rules governing financial relief, along with the recognition and enforcement of foreign orders, and concludes with an overview of international initiatives such as the Hague Conference on Private International Law.


Author(s):  
Grušić Uglješa ◽  
Heinze Christian ◽  
Merrett Louise ◽  
Mills Alex ◽  
Otero García-Castrillón Carmen ◽  
...  

The new edition of this well-established and highly regarded work has been fully updated to encompass the major changes and developments in the law. The book provides comprehensive and accessible coverage of the basic principles of private international law. It offers a rigorous academic examination of the subject and also a practical guide to the complex subject of private international law. Written by academics who previously worked as solicitors, there is extensive coverage of commercial topics such as the jurisdiction of various courts and their limitations, stays of proceedings and restraining foreign proceedings, the recognition and enforcement of judgments, the law of obligations with respect to contractual and non-contractual obligations. There are also sections on the various aspects of family law in private international law, and the law of property, including the transfer of property, administration of estates, succession, and trusts.


Author(s):  
Joost Blom

The First Part of this article outlined the choice of law methods developed by French and German law for problems relating to the substantial or essential validity of contracts, leaving aside the complicated matters of formation and capacity. This part will deal in the same way with the laws of the United States. A concluding part in the next volume of the Yearbook will deal with Anglo-Canadian law and will glance, by way of postscript, at a draft convention on the law applicable to contractual obligations that has been put forward recently by the Commission of the European Communities.


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