The tension between party autonomy and european union law: Some observations on ingmar GB ltd V eaton leonard technologies inc

International and Comparative Law Quarterly

Volumn 51, Issue 1, 2002, Pages 135-154

  Verhagen, H L E ^a  

^a RADBOUD UNIVERSITY NIJMEGEN   (Netherlands)

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EID: 84987611386     PISSN: 00205893     EISSN: 14716895     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1093/iclq/51.1.135     Document Type: Article

References (84)

1. Judgment of the ECJ, Case C-381/98, ECR 2000 I-9305
2. Art 16 of the Rome Convention.
3. Art 3(3) of the Rome Convention. See further below s IV.C.
4. Art 7 of the Rome Convention: discussed immediately below.
5. In Art 7 of the Rome Convention, no special provision is made for directly applicable rules belonging to the law governing the contract under Arts 3 and 4. Probably, the idea is that these rules are simply applicable as part of the law governing the contract.
6. Cf L Collins (gen ed), Dicey and Morris on the Conflict of Laws (13th edn, London 2000), paras 1–049/51 and 32–136. A different view is possible. It could be argued that since the scope of a directly applicable rule is determined by the enacting state, on the basis of its socio-economic, political or cultural policies, it follows that the scope of these rules is therefore not determined by ‘classical’ multilateral conflict rules. Normal conflict rules only refer to rules of private law and not to ‘lois de police’.
7. Cf AVM Struycken, Les conséquences de l'intégration européenne sur le développement du droit international privé, Recueil des Cours (232) 1992 I, NR 89. Under this reasoning, directly applicable rules of the lex causae can only be applicable by virtue of Art 7. In Germany and the Netherlands opinion is divided on this issue.
8. Cf C Reithmann and D Martiny (ed), Internationales Vertragsrecht (5th edn, Cologne 1996), paras 452–4
9. Verbintenissenrecht (Vonken), Art 7 EVO, aant. 6.
10. HR 13 May 1966 NJ 1967, 3
11. Revue critique de droit international privé 1967, 521. The Alvati case is referred to in the Giuliano-Lagarde Report (comments to Art 7).
12. This is not because the courts (including the Hoge Raad) have not had the opportunity to do so. In the Sewrajsing decision (HR 12 Jan 1979 NJ 1980, 526, Revue critique de droit international privé 1980, 68) the Hoge Raad refused to give effect to Surinam currency control regulations as directly applicable rules, despite the fact that the party making the payments was domiciled in Surinam. For this reason, one commentator has observed that, in the light of the Sewrajsing case, ‘the Alnati promise to consider foreign interests seems little more than a mirage’.
13. Th M de Boer, Beyond Lex Loci Delicti, Conflicts Methodology and Multistate Torts in American Case Law (Deventer 1987), 84.
14. Council Directive 86/653/EC of 18 Dec 1986 on the co-ordination of the laws of the Member States relating to self-employed commercial agents (OJ 1986 L 382/17; ‘the Directive’).
15. Other mandatory provisions of the Directive are: Arts 3 and 4 (see Art 5)
16. Art 10(2) and (3)
17. see Art 10(4)
18. Art 11(1)
19. see Art 11(3)
20. Art 12(1) and (2)
21. see Art 12(3)
22. Art 13(1)
23. Arts 17 and 18
24. see Art 19
25. Art 20(2).
26. Judgment, paras 23–4.
27. Judgment, para 25.
28. Judgment.
29. In exceptional cases this may be different, in particular when a Member State has failed to implement a directive in time. Cf M Franzen, Privatrechtsangleichung durch die Europäische Gemeinschaft (Berlin, New York 1999), 248–55.
30. See Judgment, paras 15–19.
31. In the Netherlands this view has been articulated by CA Joustra, ‘Europese richtlijnen en internationaal privaatrecht’, WPNR (6370) 1999, 664–70.
32. In the same sense, M Fallon, Les conflits de lois et de jurisdictions dans un espace économique intégré, L'expérience de la communauté européenne, Recueil des Cours (253) 1995, 185: ‘En d'autres termes, ces règles subissent une mutation formelle: de communautaires, elles deviennent nationales par les besoins du processus de leur application.’ Similar views have been endorsed by Reithmann and Martiny, para. 34
33. von Hoffmann, in P Lagarde and B von Hoffmann (eds), L'européanisation du droit international privé (Serie de Publications de l'Acédemie de Droit Européen de Trèves, Vol 8) (Cologne 1996, 127).
34. Judgment, para 25.
35. In the same sense Fallon, Recueil des Cours (253) 1995, 185–6.
36. Cf Franzen, Privatrechtsangleichung durch die Europäische Gemeinschaft, with further references.
37. In the same sense, O Lando, ‘The EEC Convention on the Law Applicable to Contractual Obligations’, CML Rev (1987), 181–2
38. H.L.E. Verhagen, Agency in Private International Law, The Hague Convention on the Law Applicable to Agency (The Hague/Boston/London 1995), 245–6
39. J. Kropholler, Internationales Privatrecht, 3rd edn (Tübingen, 1997), 274
40. S. Grundmann, Europäisches Schuldvertragsrecht, Zeitschrift für Unternehmens- und Gesellschaftsrecht (15 Sonderheft 1999), 73.
41. Several consumer directives contain provisions stipulating that the choice of the law of a third country cannot prejudice the protection granted by the directive, if the consumer contract is closely connected with one or more Member States. Cf Art 12(2) of directive 97/7/EC on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts, OJ 1997 L 144/19
42. Art 7 of directive 99/44/EC on the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees, OJ 1999 L 171/12. It is submitted that Art 5 of the Rome Convention should be applied, in order to determine whether a close connection exists.
43. It has been argued that such obligation follows from Art 10 of the EC Treaty and from the principle of mutual recognition. Cf P von Wilmowski, Europäishes Kreditsicherungsrecht (Tübingen 1996), 66 ff.
44. Resolutions de l'Institut de droit international (1957–1991), 409.
45. Cf P Nygh, Autonomy in International Contracts, Oxford Monographs in Private International Law (Oxford, 1999), with further references.
46. Cf P von Wilmowsky, ‘EG-Vertrag und kollisionsrechtliche Rechtswahlfreiheit’ (RabelsZ 1998), 2–37.
47. Cf id, Europäisches Kreditsicherungsrecht.
48. It has been argued that only the ‘incorporation theory’, which allows the founders to set up a company in accordance with the law they consider most appropriate, is reconcilable with the freedom of establishment. Cf. for an elaborate treatment of this issue, S Rammeloo, Corporations in Private International Law, Oxford Monographs in Private International Law (Oxford 2001). A judgment by the Court of Justice on this issue is soon to be expected.
49. Zie B Teyssié, Les groupes de contrats (Paris, 1975), nrs 447–73.
50. Cf F Morgenstern, International Conflicts of Labour Law (Genève, 1984), 2: ‘No country has a monopoly of excellence in labour law.’
51. H. Batiffol and P Lagarde, Droit international privé, Tome 1, 8th edn (Paris 1993), no 254, 428
52. HR 23 Oct 1987, NJ 1988, 842 (Sorensen v Aramco Overseas Company).
53. Art 6 BBA (Buitengewoon besluit arbeidsverhoudingen: Extraordinary Decree on Labour Relationships).
54. Bundesarbeitsgericht 24 Aug 1989, IPRax 1991, 407
55. RIW 1990, 754.
56. In the same sense, Batiffol and Lagarde, no 254, 428.
57. Opinion, para 65.
58. Opinion, para 68.
59. Joined Cases 89/85, 104/85, 114/85, 116/85, 117/85 and 125/85–129/85, ECR 1988, 5193 (Åhlström and others v Commission).
60. Cf P Craig and G de Búrca, EU Law, Text, Cases and Materials, 2nd edn (Oxford, 1998), 891–939.
61. Opinion, para 69.
62. Opinion, para 72.
63. Opinion, paras 81–7.
64. Opinion, para 88.
65. Opinion, para 89.
66. It seems that when discussing the binding force of Article 17 and 18 of the Directive, the Advocate General fails to make the fundamental distinction between ‘ordinary’ mandatory rules (Art 3(3) Rome Convention)
67. ‘internationally’ mandatory rules (Art 7 Rome Convention). All the mandatory rules of the Directive appear to be regarded as internationally mandatory rules in the sense of Art 7(2), which clearly contradicts the intention underlying this provision.
68. Cf. Hof Amsterdam 14 Jan 1999, JOR 1999/35
69. NIPR 1999, 152.
70. The Court of Appeal of Amsterdam had to determine the territorial scope of a provision of the Dutch Securities Markets Supervision Act (Wet toezicht effectenverkeer) (hereafter: ‘SMSA’), a statute in which several EC-directives have been implemented.
71. In fact, the Dutch cases which I have examined all concern situations where either the principal's law or that of the agent's jurisdiction was chosen. See the cases discussed in Verhagen, Agency in Private International Law, 232–8. The same is true for the Ingmar case and a recent decision by the Cour de cassation (28 Nov 2000, No 98–11.335).
72. See in particular Grundmann, Europäisches Vertragsrecht, 52–4.
73. See also ECJ 13 Oct 1993, case C-93/92
74. ECR 1993,I-5009 (CMC Motorradcenter v Baskiciogullari)
75. ECJ 7 Mar 1990, case C-69/88
76. ECR 1990, I-583 (Krantz GmbH & C. v Ontvanger der Directe Belastingen en Staat der Nederlanden). In both cases the Court of Justice held that the potential obstacles formed by national rules were too uncertain and indirect to be in violation of the EC Treaty.
77. Also relevant is ECJ 24 Jan 1991
78. case C-339/89, ECR 1991, I-107 (Alsthom Atlantique/Sulzer), where the Court of Justice held that national rules of the Member States which can be set aside by means of a choice of law by the parties, cannot be unlawful obstacles for the free movement of goods and services.
79. Cour de cassation 28 Nov 2000, No 98–11.335, in which the Cour de cassation upheld a decision by the court of appeal, in which the court of appeal refused to apply the French provisions implementing Arts 17–19 of the Directive, because the parties had chosen for the law of New York to govern their agreement. The principal was a US corporation, while the agent was a company carrying out its activities in France. It should be noted that this decision was rendered nine days after the ECJ in the Ingmar case had ruled to the opposite effect.
80. Cf. E Jayme and C Kohler, ‘Das Internationale Privat- und Verfahrensrecht der EG— Spannungen zwischen Staatsverträgen und Richtlinien’ (IPRax 1993), 357–71, in particular 358–60.
81. Cf. S Rammeloo, Das neue EG-Vertragskollisionsrecht (Cologne 1992), 340.
82. Cf the discussions recorded at Hague conference on private international law, Actes et documents de la Treizième session, Tome IV, Contrat d'intermédiares, Agency (The Hague), 130–2, 251–9, 312 and 347–50. Several controversial subjects in the debate, concerning directly applicable rules of agency law, are expressly stated by the Convention to be within the ambit of the law governing the internal relationship. Thus, Art 8(2e) makes clear that the clientele allowance is undoubtedly within the scope of the law specified by Chapter II.
83. For an extensive review of the Hague Convention on the Law Applicable to Agency, see Verhagen, Agency in Private International Law.
84. Opinion, para 72.