The Territorial Scope of Employment Legislation and Choice of Law
Modern Law Review, Vol. 75, No. 5, pp. 722-751, 2012
52 Pages Posted: 6 Sep 2012 Last revised: 6 Mar 2013
Date Written: September 3, 2012
Abstract
Traditionally, the determination of the territorial scope of the statutory rights conferred by employment legislation forming part of English law has been regarded as an issue entirely disconnected from the choice‐of‐law process. Indeed, this view formed the basis of the key decision addressing the problem of territoriality, Lawson v Serco, decided by the House of Lords in 2006. After presenting the current state of the law with regard to the territorial scope of employment legislation, this article takes a critical look at Lawson v Serco. It is argued that the ‘European’ choice‐of‐law rules must have a greater importance for determining the territorial scope of employment legislation and, consequently, that the approach pursued in Lawson v Serco is no longer correct, if it ever was, and should not be followed in the future.
Keywords: employment legislation, statutory rights, territorial scope, Lawson v Serco, choice of law, private international law, conflict of laws, Rome I Regulation
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