The government is seeking input from practitioners with experience of current cross-border litigation, and is especially keen to hear from legal professionals, academics and individuals with an interest in private international law.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) consultation seeks views on whether the UK should sign and ratify the Hague Convention of 2019 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters (Hague 2019).
The Convention establishes common rules to facilitate recognition and enforcement between contracting states. It currently has seven signatories, while two parties—the EU and Ukraine—have ratified it.
Since the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020, there has been no comprehensive multilateral private international law framework in place between the UK and EU, therefore relations have been based on the Hague Convention from 2005. The consultation notes that, if the UK ratifies Hague 2019 but later accedes to the Lugano Convention, the Lugano Convention rules would supersede Hague 2019 to provide rules and a framework between the UK, EU and EFTA states.
The consultation, which closes on 9 February 2023, can be viewed here.
A paper summarising the responses will be published on gov.uk in spring 2023.
