UK Law and Practice Contributed by: Simon Bushell and Gareth Keillor, Seladore Legal
law has developed to reflect this. It continues to be a popular environment in which to resolve international fraud claims. As a corollary to this, English courts have developed a number of rules to join overseas parties to English proceedings, and/or to initiate proceedings in England against such parties. Where a party is located outside the jurisdiction, it will be necessary for the claimant to obtain the court’s permission to serve out of the jurisdiction. To do so, they will need to (broadly) show that: • there is a serious issue to be tried; • one or more of the “jurisdictional gateways” is satisfied; and • England is the proper and appropriate forum for the claim. These gateways provide the English courts with juris - diction over foreign defendants where the subject matter of the dispute is sufficiently connected to Eng - land or Wales. The most common gateways for fraud claims are that: • the claim relates partly or wholly to property within the jurisdiction; • the claim involves a contract governed by English law or a jurisdiction clause in favour of England and Wales; • the harmful act or the harm suffered occurred in England and Wales; and/or • an international co-defendant is a “necessary and proper party” to proceedings in England and Wales against other defendants over whom there is juris - diction (eg, due to a jurisdiction clause or due to their domicile). It is open to a foreign party who has been joined to challenge jurisdiction, including on the grounds of forum non conveniens (ie, that England and Wales is not the appropriate venue for a particular claim, and that a more appropriate forum exists elsewhere). 4.2 Service of Proceedings out of the Jurisdiction The procedure for serving parties out of the jurisdic - tion is discussed in 4.1 Joining Overseas Parties to
Fraud Claims. In summary, the claimant will need to show that: • there is a serious issue to be tried; • one or more of the “jurisdictional gateways” is satisfied; and • England is the proper and appropriate forum for the claim. Having established that they are permitted to serve on a party out of the jurisdiction, the claimant must provide service using one of the following methods: • under an international multilateral service conven - tion, such as the Hague Service Convention, or a bilateral service agreement between the UK and another state; • if permitted under the relevant foreign law, through the government or judicial authority of a foreign state or through a UK consular authority located in that jurisdiction; • by any method permitted by the law of the relevant foreign state; and • on a foreign state through the UK’s Foreign Minis - try (FCDO). The claimant may also apply to the English court for permission to serve a party out of the jurisdiction via alternative means. This can be a useful tool when the prescribed method of service is problematic (for example, because an address cannot be found or because service is being evaded). When determin - ing whether to grant alternative service on a foreign- located party, the court will consider: • whether there is a good reason to do so, taking into account all the circumstances; • whether the alternative means will ensure that the document is brought to the other party’s attention; • how quickly the application has been made; and • whether the party is located in a state to which a multilateral or bilateral service convention applies. If the claimant is seeking alternative service on a par - ty out of the jurisdiction, and that method of service would be within the jurisdiction, the claimant must still obtain permission to serve out of the jurisdiction.
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