Plaintiff’s Choice of Law in Cross-Border Tort Conflicts

Abstract

The thesis of this Article is that, subject to specified conditions, the victims of certain cross-border torts should have the option of choosing between the laws of the state of the injurious conduct and those of the state of the resulting injury. Although this appears to be radical position, it is consistent with the results reached in most cases in the more than forty U.S. jurisdictions that have abandoned the traditional lex loci delicti rule. Adopting a rule to this effect will relieve courts from the burden of individualized choice-of-law determinations, conserve litigation resources and, in many cases, facilitate settlements.

Keywords: choice of law, conflict of laws, private international law, cross-border torts, plaintiff's choice, favor laesi, environmental torts, products liability

JEL Classification: K13, K41, k19, k29, k39, k40, k49