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Written by Sophie Hunter

Since 2017, the Supreme People’s Court of China (SPC) has established three internet courts in Hangzhou, Beijing and Guangzhou which are major hubs for e-commerce, the internet industry and the headquarters of giant internet companies like Alibaba and Baidu. With an internet penetration of 54% and approximately 800 million internet users, the introduction of such courts helps to reduce the rising number of online disputes between citizens in a time and cost efficient way thanks to the admissibility of blockchain backed online data as evidence. China’s leading role in internet litigation comes at no surprise since regular courts favor documentary evidence over live testimony and already so much is done online.

This post sheds light on this new model and how it has potential to influence other jurisdictions.

China’s political strategy towards innovation and internet

Like many other countries, China views the Internet as key to its future growth and development opportunities. The Chinese government maintains the world’s most sophisticated internet censorship apparatus called the Great Firewall. After the 2017 cybersecurity law, the level of internet freedom in the country declined as a result of strengthened repressive restrictions on online activities and onerous financial burdens on technology companies, independent media, and bloggers. President Xi Jinping announced plans at the 19th Communist Party Congress in October 2017 to transform China into a “cyber superpower”. China’s Internet Plus strategy, which is part of this initiative, encompasses innovations such as internet courts, in order to actively promote the healthy development of e-commerce, industrial networks, and Internet banking, as well as facilitate the growth of new industries and the expansion of its companies’ international Internet footprint. Although China has recently clamped down on cryptocurrencies, it hailed blockchain development in its five-year plan to 2021.

The new model of specialized courts for internet-related disputes or Internet Courts

According to the Provisions published by the SPC (Provisions on Several Issues Concerning the Trial of Cases by the International Courts) the Internet Courts focus on disputes involving: the online sale of goods and services, lending, copyright and neighboring rights ownership and infringement, domains, infringement on personal rights or property rights via the Internet, product liability claims, and Internet public interest litigation brought by prosecutors. The litigation process is conducted solely online, including the service of legal documents, the presentation of evidence, and the actual trial itself which, to comply with principles of trial in person and direct speech principle, rely on the online video system.

A major advantage of such courts is that it addresses the increasing workload and burden on the judiciary. The average duration of these online trials in Hangzhou in 2017/18 was 28 minutes, and the average processing period from filing to trial and conclusion was 38 days. However, the Hangzhou Internet Court has also been criticized for its lack of impartiality, since it is technically supported by Alibaba and its subsidiaries which are related to most disputes in the region. Other courts have not faced such criticism.

Blockchain mechanisms as a new method to authenticate evidence

Blockchain-related innovations are increasingly becoming relevant to legally authenticate evidence. Since a blockchain generates immutable, time-stamped data which can then be used as an auditable trail, it seems likely that the legal sphere will get heavily influenced in the near future by the security of the blockchain (which is set before any transactions or documentation takes place). China is ahead of the game in this respect. At the 2019 Forum on China Intellectual Property Protection, the president of the Beijing Internet Court (established in September 2018, and has since processed 14,904 cases) reportedly said that the court employs technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain to render judgement.

Since most of the evidence in the cases heard by Internet Courts is electronic data and is stored on the Internet, the SPC outlined in its Provisions that the Internet court can rely on evidence provided by the parties that can be authenticated by electronic signatures, time stamps, hash value verification, blockchain and other tamper-proof verification methods. Before the implementation of the Provisions, the Internet Court in Hangzhou for the first time in China admitted evidence that was authenticated by blockchain technology in an online copyright infringement case, which confirmed that data uploaded to a blockchain platform reflected its source, generation and path of delivery, and were therefore reliable evidence. Since, China’s Supreme Court ruled that evidence authenticated with blockchain technology is binding in legal disputes.

Internet courts rely on blockchain to deal with a range of cases such as disputes over liability for Internet tort and other types of Internet-related disputes in the areas of intellectual property rights and administrative litigation. An Internet judge in China’s Hangzhou province relied on blockchain to defend Intellectual Property rights because such technology is paramount to safeguard authors’ ownership over their work. In August 2018, the same court handed down a judgment on China’s first case of unfair competitionin big data products. As Wang Jiangqiao, a judge at the Internet Court, sums up “since blockchain guarantees that data can not be tampered, all digital footprints stored in the judicial blockchain system have legal effect.”

Can this model be exported to Western jurisdictions?

With the increasing reliance on internet for both private and business matters, the number of disputes is likely to increase in the near future. Internet Courts like the ones in China could provide a model to improve efficiency, significantly reduce costs and address infringements that may have been too cost-effective to pursue otherwise, while removing at the same time human interference as much as possible, which will make the information stored on blockchain more credible as noted by Qin Pengfei, a paralegal with Shanghai Dabang Law firm. Already the US State of Vermont has passed legislation to allow courts to use data on blockchain as evidence. In 2018, the U.K. Law Commission has announced its plans to review legal frameworks involving smart contracts so that it doesn’t lag behind as blockchain legal applications develop. However, no other country has yet actively followed suit with China’s model of Internet Courts. One reason copyright lawyer Liu Hongze argues is the fact that the acceptance of evidence stored on the blockchain may have little impact now on non-internet-related civil or criminal lawsuits. Indeed, blockchain data being legal evidence is relatively new and courts’ acceptance of it will depend on individual courts and situations. Nevertheless, what is certain is that China’s Internet Courts have a strong potential to launch the reliance of blockchain in the legal sphere, and western countries should watch such developments carefully not to fall behind. The recent backlash on Facebook with the judgment of the Bundeskartellamt demonstrates the need to respond to an ever increasing backlog of internet related disputes which interwind privacy, competition, data, cybersecurity and technology. Specialized courts such as Internet Courts might well be the answer.

Riga Graduate School of Law (RGSL) calls for applications for the following academic vacancy:

Docent in Private Law with additional specialization in Private International Law or International Commercial Law or Comparative Contract Law, for election term of 6 years.

Requirements for applicants:

• Compliance with the requirements of the Regulations on Academic and Administrative Personnel Positions of Riga Graduate School of Law;
• At least 3 years of academic work experience in English language;
• Documented experience in research and scientific publications during the last 6 years;
• Participation in scientific conferences and international projects during the last 6 years.

Main tasks:

• Provision of study work in Bachelor and Master level programmes;
• Involvement in research and at least five publications in recognized peer-reviewed academic outlets during the election term;
• Participation in RGSL governance bodies;
• Engagement in RGSL community service.

Monthly salary up to EUR 2.200,00 for full-time work-load.

Applicants should submit the following documents:

• Application letter;
• Professional curriculum vitae (in Europass format) in Latvian and English;
• Copies of documents certifying the relevant education;
• List of publications and/or significant achievements in the relevant field, from the last 6 years.

The Regulations on Academic and Administrative Personnel Positions of Riga Graduate School of Law can be found here.

Deadline for application is 17  June 2019. Applications should be sent by postal mail to Riga Graduate School of Law, Str?lnieku 4k-2, R?ga, LV 1010, Latvia or by email to vacancies@rgsl.edu.lv (Subject heading: “Academic personnel vacancies”).

For additional inquiries please contact Ms. Ieva Racenaja, Director of Riga Graduate School of Law, at ieva.racenaja@rgsl.edu.lv.

Riga Graduate School of Law informs that personal data included in the application shall be processed in order to conduct the selection of candidates (on the grounds of legitimate interests). The controller of such personal data processing is Riga Graduate School of Law.

Dans l’arrêt rapporté, la chambre criminelle casse l’arrêt de la chambre de l’instruction déclarant l’appel de la partie civile recevable au motif que la chambre de l’instruction n’a pas répondu aux conclusions des mis en cause faisant valoir que la partie civile étant irrecevable à se constituer partie civile, son appel était également irrecevable.

Crim. 15 mai 2019, FS-P+B+I, nos 19-81.531 et 18-80.121

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The Paris Court of Appeal will host a symposium on “L’attractivité de la place de Paris: Les chambres commerciales internationales: fonctionnement et trajectoire” (The attractiveness of Paris’s jurisdiction. The international Commercial Chambers: functioning and future trends) on June 14, 2019 (2pm-6pm).  

Readers of this blog will remember that on February 7, 2018, the International Commercial Chamberof the Paris Court of Appeal was inaugurated.

The establishment of this specialized appellate international Commercial Chamberfollows the creation of the first International Chamber of the Paris Commercial Court of First Instance (“Chambre de Droit International du Tribunal de Commerce”) and fits well in the current developments of the international business courts all over Europe (and out of Europe too).

The international chambers of the Paris Commercial Court and Court of Appeal (hereafter referred to as the “International Commercial Courts of Paris” or the “ICCP”) are the latest examples of the modernization of French Legal System with respect to dispute resolution in commercial matters.

In the context of Brexit, the creation of the ICCP aims at enhancing the attractiveness and international competitiveness of French courts, combining flexibility, high quality and low costs.

The Paris Court of Appeal and the Faculty of Law of the Université de Paris Est Créteil (UPEC) will organize a symposium on June 14, 2019 at the Paris Court of Appeal.  The conference will discuss the attractiveness of the Paris courts taking into account its latest evolution: the creation of the International Commercial Courts of Paris, with a focus on how these courts work in practice.

After the opening by Chantal Arens, first president of the Paris Court of Appeal and Gilles Cuniberti, professor of law at the University of Luxembourg, the event will be divided into three parts:

1. Origins and creation of the ICCP, with a comparative approach to other commercial courts in Europe.
2. Analysis of the mechanisms allowing access to the ICCP, with practical insight into the drafting and interpretation of choice of court clauses, the types of disputes that may fall within the scope of the Chambers and the relationships with arbitration.
3. Analysis of the procedural rules before the Chambers, with a specific focus on how the Chambers work in practice, the use of the English language, the available tools for the parties, and the current rules of practice established or being discussed in the Chambers.

The conference, led by the judges sitting in the Paris international chambers, will provide a valuable feedback of 18 months of existence of the International Commercial Chamber of the Paris Court of Appeal. The future trends of the French ICCP, and their interaction with other courts in Europe will also be debated.

Emmanuel Gaillard, Visiting Professor at Yale Law School and Harvard Law School, will give the closing speech.

A detailed description of the afternoon’s program can be found on the Paris Court of Appeal’s website (in French only/English version to be published soon).

You can register by writing an email to: colloque.ca-paris@justice.fr

 

Links to previous relevant posts:

http://conflictoflaws.net/2011/paris-commercial-court-creates-international-division/

http://conflictoflaws.net/2018/doors-open-for-first-hearing-of-international-chamber-at-paris-court-of-appeal/

http://conflictoflaws.net/2018/the-domino-effect-of-international-commercial-courts-in-europe-whos-next/

 

On the occasion of the XVIII National Meeting of Private International Law Professors, the Private International and Comparative Law Master’s Degree Program of the Central University of Venezuela will launch its new website and the first issue of its yearbook in Caracas. The event, organized jointly with the “Tatiana de Maekelt” Institute of Law, will gather professors of Private International Law from different Venezuelan law schools to discuss current topics of interest, including new methods of teaching and evaluation in this subject.

The Yearbook will allow professors, graduates, current students and visiting professors to share their views on the classic and current topics of Private International and Comparative Law. Its launching represents the desire to have a specialized publication on these matters within the Venezuelan forum.

The first issue of the Yearbook contains the first thesis submitted for a Master’s Degree on the institution of renvoi, four papers spanning International Procedural Law, electronic means of payment, cross-border know-how contracts and International Family Law, sixteen of the papers presented during the Commemoration of the Twentieth Anniversary of the Venezuelan Private International Law Act’s entry into force, held on February 6, 2019 and a collaboration by Professor Esplugues Mota, Professor of Private International Law at the University of Valencia (Spain), where he recalls his time as a visiting professor in 2000, 2003 and 2008.

The Yearbook’s full table of contents is as follows:

Eugenio Hernández-Bretón
Presentación (Presentation)

I. Trabajos de Tesis (Thesis)

Caroline Bergeron

El reenvío en el Derecho Internacional Privado contemporáneo (The renvoi in Contemporary Private International Law)

II. Trabajos monográficos (Papers)

José Antonio Briceño Laborí

El principio de favor recognitionis como criterio de interpretación de los requisitos de eficacia de las sentencias extranjeras. Perspectivas desde el Derecho internacional privado venezolano (The Principle of favor recognitionis as an interpretation criterion of the effectiveness requirements of foreign judgements. Perspectives from Venezuelan Private International Law)

Andrea Cruz Suárez y Pedro Ramírez Braiz

El Dash como medio electrónico de pago. Aspectos contractuales internos e internacionales (Dash as an electronic means of payment. Internal and international contractual aspects)

Luis Carlos Mota Arocha

Derecho aplicable a contratos internacionales de know how de acuerdo a la Ley de Derecho internacional privado (Law applicable to international know-how contracts according to the Private International Law Act)

Eugenio Hernández-Bretón

La fractura de la familia venezolana ante el Derecho internacional privado (The fracture of the Venezuelan family before Private International Law)

III. Events. Commemoration of the twentieth anniversary of the Private International Law Act’s entry into force

Eugenio Hernández-Bretón

La Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado y la universidad venezolana. Palabras de apertura (The Private International Law Act and the Venezuelan university. Opening words).

Claudia Madrid Martínez

Reflexiones en torno al sistema de fuentes del Derecho internacional privado venezolano (Reflections on the system of sources of the Venezuelan Private International Law Act).

Victor Gregorio Garrido Ramos

Cuestiones terminológicas en el artículo 1 de la Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado venezolana (Terminological issues in Article 1 of the Venezuelan Private International Law Act).

Anna María Tambasco B.

Situaciones jurídicas válidamente creadas (Vested Rights)

Rubén Valdivieso

Orden Público (Ordre Public)

Mirian Rodríguez Reyes de Mezoa

Los derechos reales en la Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado venezolana. 20 años después (In rem rights under the Venezuelan Private International Law Act. 20 years later)

Guillermo Palao Moreno

Criterios de conexión para la determinación de la ley aplicable en materia de familia y sucesiones en los sistemas de Derecho internacional privado venezolano y europeo (Connection criteria for the determination of the applicable law to family and successions matters under the Venezuelan and European Private International Law systems)

Froila Eugenia Pimentel C.

La indemnización de los daños punitivos en Venezuela en aplicación del artículo 9 de la Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado (The compensation of punitive damages in application of the Article 9 of the Private International Law Act)

Rosalvi Villegas

El principio de proximidad en la Ley de Derecho de Internacional Privado venezolana (The principle of proximity in the Venezuelan Private International Law Act)

Gerardo Feliche Lione Pedra

La cláusula de sumisión a la jurisdicción en los contratos de adhesión y las soluciones prácticas aportadas por la Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado (The choice of forum clause in adhesion contracts and the practical solutions provided by the Private International Law Act).

Andrea Carolina Olivares Hernández

La sumisión contemplada en el artículo 46 de la Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado (Submission to Venezuelan courts under Article 46 of the Private International Law Act).

Andrés Carrasquero Stolk

Derogatoria de la jurisdicción de los tribunales venezolanos en contratos de trabajo internacionales (Derogation of the Venezuelan jurisdiction in international labour contracts).

Luis David Briceño Pérez

Las acciones por intereses o derechos colectivos o difusos no son class actions (Actions for collective or diffuse interests or rights are not class actions)

María Alejandra Ruíz

Ejecución de las medidas cautelares de conformidad con la Ley de Derecho Internacional Privado venezolana (Enforcement of precautionary measures under the Venezuelan Private International Law Act)

José Antonio Briceño Laborí

Efectos de las sentencias extranjeras y procedimiento de exequátur (Effects of foreign judgments and exequatur procedure).

Eugenio Hernández-Bretón

La “historia secreta” de la Ley de Derecho internacional privado. Palabras de clausura (The “secret history” of the Private International Law Act. Closing remarks).

IV. Visiting Professors

Carlos Esplugues Mota

La Maestría de Derecho internacional privado de la Universidad Central de Venezuela: tres participaciones y un agradecimiento infinito (The Private International Law Master’s at the Central University of Venezuela: three visits and infinite gratitude)

The event will take place on June 10th.

Upon release the Yearbook will be available at: http://www.mdipc-ucv.com

OG (Parquet de Lübeck)
Espace de liberté, sécurité et justice COJP COPO
Les parquets allemands n’offrent pas une garantie d’indépendance suffisante par rapport au pouvoir exécutif pour pouvoir émettre un mandat d’arrêt européen

(Apologies for the odd formatting in this post: I tried to debug this but failed. I am not wasting too much time trying, for I assume most of you do not visit the blog to enjoy its design qualities). In [2019] EWCA Civ 805 Airbus v Generali et al CJEU authority in West Tankers clearly echoes. I had hoped to review the case much sooner after my Tweet reporting it a few days after the judgment came out. That delay does have the advantage that Clyde & Co in the meantime have analysis to which I am happy to refer.

The claimant in this action and the respondent to the appeal, Airbus, claims declarations (1) that it is not liable to the defendant insurers for losses incurred in relation to an incident which occurred on 29 September 2013 in which an aircraft which it had manufactured sustained damage when landing in Rome and (2) that proceedings commenced against it by the defendants in Italy have been commenced contrary to the terms of an English exclusive jurisdiction clause. The clause in question is contained in an Airframe Warranties Agreement dated 8 July 2010 (“the Warranties Agreement”) concluded between (among others) Airbus and the defendants’ insured, the Italian airline company Alitalia. The issue on this appeal is whether the English court has jurisdiction over these claims by virtue of the jurisdiction clause. Moulder J held that it does and the defendant insurers (henceforth “the appellants”) now appeal.

Appellants contend, in outline, that the jurisdiction clause is of limited scope and does not extend to Airbus’s claims in this action, that the claim for a negative declaration falls within an arbitration clause in a different agreement, a Purchase Agreement dated 31 October 2005 which provides for ICC arbitration in Geneva, and that their own proceedings in Italy under articles of the Italian Civil Code are not within the scope of either clause. They say in addition that they cannot be in breach of an exclusive jurisdiction clause to which, as insurers, they were never parties and that, regardless of the true construction of the clause, there is no basis on which the English court can make a declaration against them (essentially, per Turner v Grovit and West Tankers).

Males LJ at 49: The standard of proof to be applied in determining whether the English court has jurisdiction under Article 25 of the Brussels Recast Regulation is that of a good arguable case. Kaifer Aislimentos was discussed as relevant authority. However, at 52: ‘sometimes it will be sensible, when a question of law arises on an application to challenge jurisdiction, for the court to decide it rather than merely deciding whether it is sufficiently arguable.’  Discussion of the contractual construction of the choice of court clause then follows at 62 ff and concludes in favour of a wide application in casu.

At 77 ff: The question whether the appellants’ claim in Italy falls within the scope of the English jurisdiction clause. Males LJ notes correctly that this depends on the nature of the claim brought in Italy, not on the defences which may be or have in fact been raised by Alitalia. At 82 he fairly swiftly concludes that even though the Italian claim is for breach of non-contractual obligations under articles of the Italian Civil Code, it is sufficiently connected to the Warranties Agreement to be within the scope of the exclusive jurisdiction clause. At 83 therefore: the commencement and pursuit of the Italian proceedings was contrary to the terms of that clause and that the English court has jurisdiction to determine that claim.

That then brings us to the discussion of what the English courts might potentially do to assist the party relying on the choice of court clause – given the unavailability of anti-suit per West Tankers. Noteworthy is that the new lis alibi pendens rule protecting choice of court following Brussels Ia, seemingly was not deployed or discussed in the Italian proceedings – at any rate there is no reference to any such discussion in the Court of Appeal judgment (other than perhaps at 84 which seems to suggest that amendment of claims brought the issue to the surface and this may not yet have been the case at the time of the discussion of the Italian proceedings).

A statement by the English courts finding infringement of the clause, would not just have an impact on cost rulings but would also ground a delictual claim. At 97 Males LJ settles the discussion whether such a declaration might be possible: ‘I can see no valid basis on which West Tankers can be distinguished. If it is held that commencement of the Italian proceedings by Alitalia would have been a breach of the jurisdiction clause in the Warranties Agreement, it follows that their commencement by the appellant insurers is a breach of an equivalent obligation in equity which Airbus is entitled to enforce and that the English court has jurisdiction to grant a declaration to say so.’

Interesting and highly relevant authority.

Geert.

(Handbook of) EU Private International Law, 2nd ed. 2016, Heading 2.2.2.10.2.,  Heading 2.2.9, Heading 2.2.9.4.`

 

Dans l’arrêt rapporté, la chambre criminelle souligne que le juge ne peut accorder une dispense de peine que s’il constate dans sa décision que le reclassement du coupable est acquis, que le dommage causé est réparé et que le trouble résultant de l’infraction a cessé.

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