French Supreme Court refuses to apply a unilateral jurisdiction clause

In a recent decision, the French Supreme Court (Cour de cassation) has again refused to apply a unilateral jurisdiction clause. A unilateral jurisdiction clause requires one party to bring proceedings in one jurisdiction only, while the other may choose to bring proceedings in other jurisdictions.

The decision, which comes after the much-discussed 2012 French Supreme Court judgment in the Rothschild case (Cass. 1. Civ, 26 September 2012), is a further reminder of the need to give careful consideration to the validity of dispute resolution provisions in the possible jurisdiction of any future proceedings when drafting contracts. Click here to read more about the case on our Arbitration Notes blog.