Chapter III. Human Rights as a Source of Content for Public Policy in Private International Law

Author(s):  
Cecilia Fresnedo de Aguirre

This chapter focuses on the restricted character of international public policy and on the fact that though it belongs to each State, many of its fundamental principles are enshrined in human rights conventions and private international law conventions and therefore are shared by all the States Parties to that convention, which enables the integration and articulation of diversity, at either a regional or a universal level. Consequently, the identification of those shared fundamental principles should increase the predictability of results in private international law cases and soften the barrier that the public policy exception imposes regarding foreign laws and judgments. Notwithstanding this, the aforementioned statements do not mean that the role of the public policy exception will disappear. In order to develop this argument, this chapter explains some key concepts such as those of international and domestic public policy, a posteriori and a priori public policy, their differences and similarities. It examines how public policy evolves over time alongside society and how that evolution is reflected in statutory and conventional rules.


Author(s):  
Zaher Khalid

This chapter examines Moroccan perspectives on the Hague Principles. In Morocco, the sources of private international law applicable to international commercial contracts are both of a national and an international nature. International sources include mainly treaties and, to a lesser extent, international customs to which the Moroccan courts may refer in particular cases. National sources are statutory law, case law, and scholarly writings. Case law has always played a vital role in the development and the interpretation of the rules applicable to international commercial contracts. It is indeed the role of the courts to determine the scope of law chosen by the parties and to delimit the boundaries of international public policy as a limit to the application of the law chosen by the parties. Moroccan courts consider international customs as important sources in respect of international contracts and arbitration. Having frequently used the universally accepted principles of private international law, Moroccan courts could easily draw on the Hague Principles to find solutions to certain questions that have not been addressed by the legislature.


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