Brussels Out But Perhaps Lugano Re-cast?

As focus turns to the UPC and patent lawyers debate jurisdictional issues and battles that will inevitably lie ahead between courts in non-UPC participating countries and those in the UPC system, it is interesting to note that the UK has not given up on its efforts to re-engage with the Lugano Convention. Following Brexit, the UK legal system was cast adrift given that for newly brought cases, the UK was no longer subject to the Brussels Re-cast nor Lugano Conventions which has led to considerable uncertainly as to which courts should take primacy over disputes that could be brought before the courts of more than one country. Furthermore, enforcement of foreign judgments in the UK and abroad is now left, at least in the UK, to common law and old and out-dated principles. Re-engaging with Lugano would be a step in the right direction to ensure certainty for litigants and Courts alike.