Critical analysis of existence of a Vicious Circle phenomenon within European private international law, with particular emphasis on the doctrine of Renvoi, and their effect on the principle of legal certainty

Abstract

EU Member States have national legislation which provides rules to determinate the competent jurisdiction and applicable law according to its own private international law (PIL). As every State’s rules differ, PIL has attempted to harmonise the diverging conflict rules in order to enhance predictability, certainty and uniformity of decisions. Sometimes, Courts embark on a “Viscous Circle” by determining the competent Court or the applicable law. The Doctrine of Renvoi assists judges determining the applicable law.. Acceptance of Single or Double Renvoi can be advantageous. Its application can prevent conflicting decisions and avoids decisions which are decided according to foreign State’s laws. Although majority of European Regulations exclude Renvoi, it nevertheless plays its role in matters concerning EU Member States where Regulations are inapplicable. The interplay between Brussels I Regulation on Jurisdiction and Rome Regulations on Applicable Law also within their rules contain other smaller Vicious Circles where the Court must determine some concept. This thesis aims to provide the reader with an understanding of ‘international ping-pong’ situation in PIL where several countries in the process of determining the competent forum and the law that will govern the case, enter into a Vicious Circle of transferring a particular case from one court to another, under one applicable law to another and vice-versa. The subject and scope of this thesis is the effect of Vicious Circles, particularly Renvoi, on predictability and clarity of European PIL.