Beyond Brexit - Governing Law And Jurisdiction Clauses

As the 31 December 2020 rapidly approaches, marking the end of the transition period for the UK's departure from the European Union (EU), we look at some of the issues around choice of law and jurisdiction clauses for commercial parties contracting with entities in EU member states.

When considering choice of law and jurisdiction clauses you are looking at the law that is going to govern a contract and the jurisdiction for disputes, ie which courts are entitled to hear a dispute and, most importantly, considerations around the effective enforcement of judgments obtained in the courts of one country in the courts of another.

Bear in mind the mischief that you are trying to avoid, namely lengthy and costly disputes over which court should determine a dispute arising out of a contract, and which substantive law will be applied to determine the parties' rights and obligations under the contract. Such disputes may lead to delay and additional costs. Contracting