Brooke Marshall (University of Oxford): Forum legis in English Law

About the Speaker:
Brooke Marshall is an Associate Professor of the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford, and a Fellow of St Edmund Hall. Her research examines intersections both within the field of private international law and between the field and other areas of law and legal practice. Her work has a doctrinal foundation in international commercial dispute resolution and engages with normative and comparative questions raised by cross-border relationships.

About the Topic:
An initial determination by an English court as to the law that should apply to a cross-border dispute is commonplace at the jurisdictional stage, directly affecting both the assumption and exercise of jurisdiction. This project, jointly undertaken with Dr Roxana Banu, maps the substantial and increasing role played by choice of law in the jurisdictional enquiry. Focussing on the governing law gateways for service outside the jurisdiction, it provides a theoretical, historical, and doctrinal account of England’s forum legis. We explore its imperial roots, the results it produces in the case law, and whether basing the adjudicatory jurisdiction of English courts on the applicability of English law can be normatively justified in routine commercial cases.

About the Virtual Workshop Series:
The virtual workshop series “Current Research in Private International Law" is organised by Ralf Michaels and Antonia Sittig. The series features leading national and international scholars who present and discuss their work on current developments and research topics in private international law. The workshops are geared to scholars who are researching in the field of private international law, but attendance is open to all individuals having an academic interest (doctoral candidates and students are expressly invited).

The virtual workshop will be held as a video conference via Zoom. Please register no later than Monday, 2 November 2026 using this LINK.

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