Nowadays it is more and more common that legal relationships have a cross-border character. We sign contracts with people who reside in another country․ The course is an introduction to general principles of private international law with the emphasis on the unification of the conflict of law rules for contractual and non-contractual obligations as the part of the integration process within the EU and its effects on the freedoms of movement within the common market.
Nowadays it is more and more common that legal relationships have a cross-border character. We sign contracts with people who reside in another country, we work in international companies, and we buy goods via Internet. In every case like this there is one very important legal question that arises: which law is applicable to the given case? Such cross-border legal relationships are even more common within the EU which provides freedom of movement.
In this context, different conflict of rules being in force in different Member States can be understood as an obstacle to freedom of movement. That is the reason why the EU tries to create unified private international law in some certain areas of private law, like contractual obligations. But those EU activities are only the part of the bigger process, which has stated many decades ago, by states signing international agreement, mostly within other international organization, which is The Hague Conference on Private International Law.
In the introductory part of the course the main sources of private international law – domestic regulations, international conventions and EU secondary law – will be presented, with special focus on their relations towards each other. Along with the EU, being one of the most important international legislator in this matter, the Hague Conference of Private International Law and its work will be described.
The second part of the course is an overview of main European (EU regulations) and international legal instruments (so called the Hague conventions) that provide rules governing jurisdiction, applicable law and recognition and enforcement of judgements for contractual and non-contractual obligations, as well as those, that unify substantive law (e.g. United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods – CISG or Montreal Convention on Contract of Carriage by Air).
The last part will be a short guide to carrying out research in private international law – the most important research institutes and libraries will be presented, as well as possibilities of scholarships and Internet websites with materials, papers, on-line lectures and news on private international law.
After this course you are able to:
- Understand the consequences of different legal orders in obligation law in different EU Member States.
- Understand the process of unification of private international law as a part of the European Integration.
- Indicate the role of the European Union in creating the unified private international law provisions.
- Find applicable rule on jurisdiction and predict which court will be right to hear the case in civil and commercial matters.
The course is designed for
The course is designed for students who are interested in legal matters, especially those with international elements. The main point of the course is to show that the unification of private international law is a part of the European Integration, by describing the reasons behind it and the results of it.
The course is also suitable for students and professionals who want to gain knowledge of the practical matters of indicating the right conflict of laws rule and applying it in order to find a law that will be applicable to contractual and non-contractual obligations.
Admission Requirements
It would be ideal for the participants to have a basic understanding of how European Union law is created and how European Union Institutions work. The basic knowledge of legal matters, especially contract law, will be an asset, but it is not required.
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