Meeth v Glacetal: ECJ 9 Nov 1978

Europa Although, with regard to an agreement conferring jurisdiction, article 17 of the Brussels Convention, as it is worded, refers to the choice by the parties to a contract of a single court or the courts of a single state, that wording cannot be interpreted as prohibiting an agreement under which the two parties to a contract , who are domiciled in different states, can be sued only in the courts of their respective states. Having regard to the need to respect individuals ‘right of independence’, upon which article 17 is based, and the need to avoid superfluous procedure, which forms the basis of the convention as a whole, the first paragraph of article 17 cannot be interpreted as preventing a court before which proceedings have been instituted pursuant to a clause of the type described above from taking into account a claim for a set-off connected with the legal relationship in dispute if such court considers that course to be compatible with the letter and spirit of the clause conferring jurisdiction.

Citations:

C-23/78

European

Updated: 10 April 2022; Ref: scu.132668