IBA Litigation Committee: Impact of COVID-19 on Court Operations and Litigation Practice

IBA LOGOThe IBA Litigation Committe has produced a survey looking at the impact of COVID-19 on court operations and litigation practice across 37 different jurisdictions – from Argenina to the United States. Jeff Galway and Urs Hoffmann-Nowotny served as general editors and I had the honour of contributing the chapter on Germany. The plan is to update the survey as matters develop in the various jurisdictions. Here’s the link to the IBA Litigation Committe homepage and here is a link to the report in its current form. Continue reading

Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements Comes Into Force

HCCH LogoOn October 1, 2015, the Hague Convention of 30 June 2005 on Choice of Court Agreements came into force in 28 States, namely in Mexico and all member states of the European Union – with the traditional exception of Denmark, which continues its isolationist policy in jurisdictional matters. The Convention thus comes into force a little over 10 years after it was signed in 2005, as the result of the European Union’s approval earlier this year. It remains to be seen whether its entry into force creates some momentum amongst other states to follow. From a European perspective, the United States’ ratification would have the biggest practical impact. Continue reading