On the Declaration of Matters Which Have “Strong Interests” under Article 21 of the Convention on Choice of Court Agreements

Abstract

The Convention on the Choice of Court Agreements provides for a declaration of a specific matter under Article 21 of the general provisions of chapter IV, that is, when a State has a strong interest in not applying the Convention to a particular matter, it may declare that the Convention is not applicable in this matter. However, for what is a “strong interest”, what matters can constitute a “strong interest”, the Convention does not make a statement. As a Contracting Party, EU declares that it will not apply the Convention to certain types of insurance contracts that EU has strong interests in when acceding to the Convention. Therefore, in-depth analysis of the connotation of the “strong interests”, while clearly distinguishing it from public order, and learning from the European experience, will help China make a clear statement on matters related to the “strong interest” in the ratification of the Convention.