Universal Jurisdiction and Third States in the Reform of the Brussels I Regulation

Abstract

In December 2010, the European Commission published a Proposal for a reform of the Brussels I Regulation on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. One of the cornerstones of the Proposal is the operation of the Regulation in the international legal order, a subject which has proven to be one of the most intricate issues in European international civil procedure. The following paper will give a first assessment of the Commission Proposal as regards third State scenarios. After a brief discussion of the Union’s competence and the Union’s interest to legislate in this field, it will turn to the extension of special heads of jurisdiction to third State defendants, the decline of jurisdiction in favour of third States and the proposal for new subsidiary grounds of jurisdiction, before briefly concluding on recognition and enforcement of third State judgments.

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Keywords: Third State, non-Member State, Brussels I, 44/2001, Brussels I Reform, Owusu, COM(2010) 748, jurisdiction