A Case With Foreign Elements: Preliminary Issues And Their Significance

With the acceleration of globalization over the past few decades and its economic, political and cultural consequences; when the global world has become massively interconnected, the legal landscape and its frameworks, as well as practice and points of focus have been changing. One of the effects of the phenomenon is the 'marked increase in the appearance in courts of legal disputes involving the application of foreign laws'^[1], as Chief Justice Spigelman pointed out referring to the courts of Australia. When a case involves foreign elements there is a number of preliminary issues that courts consider, and this in itself creates uncertainty, state of doubt as to 'whether, and to what extent, a foreign law will be applied'^[2]. Parties to the cross-border commercial transactions are faced with the potential risks, costs, and significant impact on their cases solely depending on the court's choice of laws. So, what are the main preliminary issues a court has to decide and