Internationalizing Domestic Courts in Europe

Abstract

After the establishment of various international commercial courts in Asia, Continental Europe is now following Asia’s example by establishing its own. This chapter discusses the reasons for the new international commercial courts in France, Germany and the Netherlands. It then sets out how the three European countries position their international commercial courts, looking at the different procedures, functions and organization. The chapter distinguishes these courts from their Asian counterparts, and compares them to each other. This is done by looking at changes of legislation, whether English is used for the full procedures or only partially, by reviewing the courts’ rules of procedure, by discussing their (online) accessibility and by reviewing how the courts have functioned so far.