Recent developments in the sphere of jurisdiction in civil and commercial matters

Abstract

Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters, commonly referred to as the Brussels I Regulation (hereafter "the Regulation"), lays down uniform rules to settle conflicts of jurisdiction and to facilitate the free circulation of judgments in the European Union. As its title suggests, it applies in a broad range of matters including contractual, delictual and property claims. The Regulation replaced the 1968 Brussels Convention on jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters, as amended by several conventions on the accession of new Member States. It is applicable in all the Member States, including, by way of a separate international agreement, to Denmark which has a special regime for judicial cooperation. The 1988 Lugano Convention, which has now been revised by the new Lugano Convention concluded by the Union, Denmark and the EFTA States on 30 October 2007, governs the same subject matter as the Regulation and binds the Member States (including Denmark) on the one hand and Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland on the other hand.