conflict of laws Conflict of laws (also called private international law) is the set of rules or laws a jurisdiction applies to a case, transaction, or other occurrence that has connections to more than one jurisdiction. This body of law deals with three broad t ...

, the term ''lex loci'' (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

for "the law of the place") is a shorthand version of the

choice of law Choice of law is a procedural stage in the litigation of a case involving the conflict of laws when it is necessary to reconcile the differences between the laws of different legal jurisdictions, such as sovereign states, federated states (as in t ...

rules that determine the ''

lex causae In conflict of laws, the term ''lex loci'' (Latin for "the law of the place") is a shorthand version of the choice of law rules that determine the ''lex causae'' (the laws chosen to decide a case).''Black's Law Dictionary'' abridged Sixth Edition (1 ...

'' (the laws chosen to decide a case).''Black's Law Dictionary'' abridged Sixth Edition (1991), p. 630.

General principles

When a case comes before a

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

, if the main features of the case (particularly the parties and the causes of action) are local, the court will then apply the ''lex fori'', the prevailing

municipal law Municipal law is the national, domestic, or internal law of a sovereign state and is defined in opposition to international law. Municipal law includes many levels of law: not only national law but also state, provincial, territorial, regional, ...

, to decide the case. However, if there are "foreign" elements to the case, the court may then be obliged, under conflict of laws, to consider whether it has

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. Jur ...

to hear the case (see

forum shopping Forum shopping is a colloquial term for the practice of litigants having their legal case heard in the court thought most likely to provide a favorable judgment. Some jurisdictions have, for example, become known as "plaintiff-friendly" and so h ...

). The court must then characterise the issues to allocate the factual basis of the case to its relevant legal classes. The court may then be required to apply the

rules to decide the ''

'', the law to be applied to each cause of action. Relevant rules include the following.

''Lex causae''

''Lex causae'' (

for "law of the cause"), in

, is the law chosen by the forum court from the relevant

legal system The contemporary national legal systems are generally based on one of four basic systems: civil law, common law, statutory law, religious law or combinations of these. However, the legal system of each country is shaped by its unique history an ...

s when it judges an

international International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

or interjurisdictional

case Case or CASE may refer to: Containers * Case (goods), a package of related merchandise * Cartridge case or casing, a firearm cartridge component * Bookcase, a piece of furniture used to store books * Briefcase or attaché case, a narrow box to c ...

. It refers to the usage of particular local laws as the basis or "cause" for the ruling, which would itself become part of referenced legal canon. Conflict of laws regulates all

lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

s involving foreign law if the outcome of a legal action would differ by the laws applied. Once the forum court has ruled that it has

to hear the case, it must then decide which possible law is to be applied.

''lex domicilii''

The ''lex domicilii'' or ''lex loci domicilii'' is the

term for "law of the domicile" in the

. Conflict is the branch of

public law Public law is the part of law that governs relations between legal persons and a government, between different institutions within a state, between different branches of governments, as well as relationships between persons that are of direct ...

regulating all

s involving a "foreign" law element where a difference in result will occur depending on which laws are applied.

''Lex fori''

''Lex fori'' (

: the law of the forum) is a

rule. If applicable, it provides that the law of the

venue Venue is the location at which an event takes place. It may refer to: Locations * Venue (law), the place a case is heard * Financial trading venue, a place or system where financial transactions can occur * Music venue, place used for a concer ...

in which a legal action is brought applies. When a court decides that it should, by reason of the principles of

conflict of law Conflict of laws (also called private international law) is the set of rules or laws a jurisdiction applies to a case, transaction, or other occurrence that has connections to more than one jurisdiction. This body of law deals with three broad t ...

, resolve a given legal dispute by reference to the laws of another jurisdiction, the ''

'', the ''lex fori'' still governs procedural matters.

''Lex loci actus''

In the

, ''lex loci actus'' or ''lex actus'' is the law of the place where the act occurred that gave rise to the legal claim. This is often confused with ''

lex loci delicti commissi In conflict of laws, the term ''lex loci'' (Latin for "the law of the place") is a shorthand version of the choice of law rules that determine the ''lex causae'' (the laws chosen to decide a case).''Black's Law Dictionary'' abridged Sixth Edition (1 ...

'' which is where the tort is committed. While typically they both point to the same location, in the case of product liability, for example, the ''lex loci actus'' would be the place of manufacturing, while the ''lex loci delicti commissi'' would be the place of injury.

''Lex loci arbitri''

The ''lex loci arbitri'' is the

term for "law of the place where

arbitration Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) that resolves disputes outside the judiciary courts. The dispute will be decided by one or more persons (the 'arbitrators', 'arbiters' or 'arbitral tribunal'), which renders the ' ...

is to take place" in the

. Conflict is the branch of

regulating all

s involving a "foreign" law element where a difference in result will occur depending on which laws are applied. When a case comes before a

and all the main features of the case are local, the court will apply the ''lex fori'', the prevailing municipal

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

, to decide the case. But if there are "foreign" elements to the case, the forum court may be obliged under the conflict of laws system to consider: *whether the forum court has

to hear the case (see the problem of

); *it must then characterise the issues, i.e. allocate the factual basis of the case to its relevant legal classes; and *then apply the

rules to decide which law is to be applied to each class. The ''lex loci arbitri'' is an element in the choice of law rules applied to cases testing the validity of a

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

. As an aspect of the

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public p ...

freedom of contract Freedom of contract is the process in which individuals and groups form contracts without government restrictions. This is opposed to government regulations such as minimum-wage laws, competition laws, economic sanctions, restrictions on pri ...

, the

parties A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature fo ...

to an agreement are free to include a

forum selection clause A forum selection clause (sometimes called a dispute resolution clause, choice of court clause, jurisdiction clause or an arbitration clause, depending upon its form) in a contract with a conflict of laws element allows the parties to agree that ...

and/or a

choice of law clause A choice of law clause or proper law clause is a term of a contract in which the parties specify that any dispute arising under the contract shall be determined in accordance with the law of a particular jurisdiction. An example is "This Agreeme ...

and, unless there is a lack of

bona fides In human interactions, good faith ( la, bona fides) is a sincere intention to be fair, open, and honest, regardless of the outcome of the interaction. Some Latin phrases have lost their literal meaning over centuries, but that is not the case ...

, these clauses will be considered valid. If there is no express selection of a

proper law The doctrine of the proper law is applied in the choice of law stage of a lawsuit involving the conflict of laws. Explanation When the jurisdiction is in dispute, one or more state laws will be relevant to the decision-making process. If the law ...

, the courts will usually take the nomination of a forum as a "connecting factor", i.e. a fact that links a case to a specific geographical location. For these purposes, one of the "forums" that may be selected is arbitration. Hence, the fact that the parties have chosen a

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

as the place of arbitration is an indication that parties may have intended the local law to apply. This indication will be weighed alongside other connecting factors. The state that has the largest number of connecting factors will be the ''

'' applied to resolve the dispute between the parties. If there is a tie, the connecting factors which relate to performance will be given a greater weighting.

''Lex loci celebrationis''

''Lex loci celebrationis'' is a

term for a legal principle in

English common law English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. Principal elements of English law Although the common law has, historically, bee ...

, roughly translated as "the law of the land (''lex loci'') where the marriage was celebrated". It refers to the validity of the union, independent of the laws of marriage of the countries involved: where the two individuals have legal nationality or citizenship, or where they live (reside or are domiciled). The assumption under the

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...

is that such a marriage, when lawfully and validly celebrated under the relevant law of the land, is also lawful and valid.

British legal tradition

In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, the jurisdiction of England, or England and Wales, as well as in many other legal jurisdictions largely or partly following the British tradition of jurisprudence, in addition to their modified local versions of the English common law, the legal principle behind the legal term was modified, qualified and further elaborated, both by legal developments in the common law ( Lord Dunedin's '' Berthiaume v D'Astous'' case ( HL 1930) ( AC 79), in which Dunedin in the

Appellate Committee of the House of Lords Whilst the House of Lords of the United Kingdom is the upper chamber of Parliament and has government ministers, it for many centuries had a judicial function. It functioned as a court of first instance for the trials of peers, for impeachments, ...

ruled that "If a marriage is good by the laws of the country where it is effected, it is good all the world over, no matter whether the proceedings or ceremony which constituted marriage according to the law of the place would not constitute marriage in the country of the domicile of one or other of the spouses. If the so-called marriage is no marriage in the place where it is celebrated, there is no marriage anywhere, although the ceremonial proceedings if conducted in the place of the parties’ domicile would be considered a good marriage"), as well as by codification by Statute (

Foreign Marriage Act 1892 The Foreign Marriage Act 1892, ''Chapter 23'' (''56 & 56 Vict.''), is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ''"to consolidate Enactments relating to the Marriage of British Subjects outside the United Kingdo ...

, 55 & 56 Vict., ''Chapter 23''). Under the English common law, whether a party needs to be present is treated as a formality of the

marriage ceremony A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vo ...

, so if a

proxy marriage A proxy wedding or proxy marriage is a wedding in which one or both of the individuals being united are not physically present, usually being represented instead by other persons. If both partners are absent a double proxy wedding occurs. Marriage ...

is valid by the law of the place where the marriage was celebrated then it will be recognised in England.

''Lex loci contractus''

In the

, the ''lex loci contractus'' is the

term for "law of the place where the contract is made".

''Lex loci delicti commissi''

The ''lex loci delicti commissi'' or ''lex loci delictus'' is the

term for "law of the place where the delict ortwas committed" in the

. Conflict of laws is the branch of law regulating all

s involving a "foreign" law element where a difference in result will occur depending on which laws are applied. The term is often shortened to ''lex loci delicti''.

''Lex loci protectionis'' (Schutzlandprinzip)

''Lex loci protectionis'' (Latin: " helaw of the place where the protection is laimed) is a

rule applied to cases concerning the infringement of

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

(IP) rights, such as

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, education ...

s or

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

s. It stipulates that the law applied to such cases is the law of the ''locus protectionis'', that is, the law of the country for which legal protection for the intellectual property is claimed. Consequently, the law of the country where the intellectual property was created or registered is not applied. ''Lex loci protectionis'' is generally accepted as the prevailing choice of law rule for IP rights, at least as concerns the existence, validity, scope and duration of the rights. Article 8 (1) of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

Rome II Regulation The Rome II Regulation (EC) N864/2007is a European Union European Union Regulation, Regulation regarding the conflict of laws on the law applicable to non-contractual obligations. From 11 January 2009, the Rome II Regulation created a Harmonisation ...

codifies it as follows:

''Lex loci rei sitae'' (or ''Lex situs'')

''Lex loci rei sitae'' (

for "law of the place where the property is situated"), or simply ''lex situs'', is the doctrine that the law governing the transfer of title to property is dependent upon and varies with the location of the property, for the purposes of the

. Conflict is the branch of

regulating all

s involving a "foreign" law element if a difference in result will occur, depending on which laws are applied.

''Lex loci solutionis''

''Lex loci solutionis'' (

: "law of the place of performance"), in

, is the law applied in the place of an event. ''Lex loci solutionis'' is one of the possible choice of law rules applied to cases that test the validity of a

or that deal with a

tort A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...

. For example, if a person domiciled in

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

and a person habitually resident in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

make a contract by e-mail and agree to meet in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

to research a book, there would be several possibly-relevant choice of law rules: * the ''

lex domicilii In conflict of laws, the term ''lex loci'' (Latin for "the law of the place") is a shorthand version of the choice of law rules that determine the ''lex causae'' (the laws chosen to decide a case).''Black's Law Dictionary'' abridged Sixth Edition (1 ...

'', ''

lex patriae In conflict of laws, the term ''lex loci'' (Latin for "the law of the place") is a shorthand version of the choice of law rules that determine the ''lex causae'' (the laws chosen to decide a case).''Black's Law Dictionary'' abridged Sixth Edition (1 ...

'' or the law of habitual residence to determine whether the parties had the capacity to enter into the contract; * ''

lex loci contractus In the conflict of laws, the ''lex loci contractus'' is the Latin term for "law of the place where the contract is made".''Black's Law Dictionary'' abridged Sixth Edition (1991), p. 630. Explanation When a case comes before a court and all the m ...

'', which could be difficult to establish since both parties never left their own

(reliance on postal rules for

offer and acceptance Offer and acceptance are generally recognised as essential requirements for the formation of a contract, and analysis of their operation is a traditional approach in contract law. The offer and acceptance formula, developed in the 19th century, id ...

in the several putative ''

'' might produce different results) * ''lex loci solutionis'' might be the most relevant since Arizona is the most closely connected to the substance of the obligations assumed * the

* ''lex fori'', which might have

issues if one of the parties is a

minor Minor may refer to: * Minor (law), a person under the age of certain legal activities. ** A person who has not reached the age of majority * Academic minor, a secondary field of study in undergraduate education Music theory *Minor chord ** Barb ...

''Lex patriae''

''Lex patriae'' (

: ''law of the fatherland'', in modern usage, ''

nationality law Nationality law is the law of a sovereign state, and of each of its jurisdictions, that defines the legal manner in which a national identity is acquired and how it may be lost. In international law, the legal means to acquire nationality and for ...

''), in

, is the system of

applied to a

if a choice is to be made between two or more laws that would change the outcome.

''Locus in quo''

''Locus in quo'' means, in

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

, the "scene of the event", or The phrase comes from the

language, meaning "The place in which". In law, ''locus in quo'' refers to "the place where the

cause of action A cause of action or right of action, in law, is a set of facts sufficient to justify suing to obtain money or property, or to justify the enforcement of a legal right against another party. The term also refers to the legal theory upon which a p ...

arose", that is, the land to which the

defendant In court proceedings, a defendant is a person or object who is the party either accused of committing a crime in criminal prosecution or against whom some type of civil relief is being sought in a civil case. Terminology varies from one jurisdic ...

trespass Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels, and trespass to land. Trespass to the person historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, wounding ...

ed. It may also be used, more generally, as any place mentioned, that is, the

or place mentioned.Bartleby's
citing E. Cobham Brewer, Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898).

References

{{Italic title

External links

The Rome II Regulation
relating to ''Lex loci protectionis'' Latin legal terminology Conflict of laws

General principles

''Lex causae''

''lex domicilii''

''Lex fori''

''Lex loci actus''

''Lex loci arbitri''

''Lex loci celebrationis''

British legal tradition

''Lex loci contractus''

''Lex loci delicti commissi''

''Lex loci protectionis'' (Schutzlandprinzip)

''Lex loci rei sitae'' (or ''Lex situs'')

''Lex loci solutionis''

''Lex patriae''

''Locus in quo''

See also

References

External links