Penny Bygrave, solicitor at Bircham Dyson Bell LLP is warning businesses in the wake of Kingspan Environmental Limited & Others v Borealis A/S and Borealis UK Limited, to consider whether they have clarity on what law governs both contractual and non-contractual claims in an international contract as other legal systems may not provide the same protection to them as English law.
"Agree your governing law and jursidiction for dispute resolution up front so as to avoid any fall out should relationships make a turn for the worse," explains Penny Bygrave.
"Where companies are contracting with UK subsidiaries, check whether the overall group company, often the parent company, is based abroad and therefore in another jurisdiction.
"If you must take the other side's jurisdiction, then taking local law advice is advisable - if things go wrong, you need to know what procedures must be followed and what the relevant time frames are.
"Deciding the jurisdiction for dispute resolution often comes down to the bargaining strength of the parties and will usually be decided by the place where the contract will be performed."
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
