Siboti K/S v BP France SA (The "Siboti") - QBD (Com Ct) (Gross J) - 11 June 2003

Carriage of goods by sea - Whether English jurisdiction clause in charterparty incorporated into bill of lading - Articles 2 and 23 of Council Regulation (EC) 44/2001 - Observations on English and Community Law

The principal issue in this case was whether an English jurisdiction clause in a charterparty was incorporated into a bill of lading. The issue was considered in the context of Articles 2 and 23 of Council Regulation (EC) 44/2001 ("the Regulation"). Article 2 provided that a defendant domiciled in a Member State is to be sued in the courts of his domicile. Article 23 contains an exception, to the effect that if the parties have agreed that a court of a Member State is to have jurisdiction to settle disputes, that court shall have jurisdiction. Such an agreement must be in or evidenced by writing, or be in a form which accords with practices which the parties have established between themselves, or be in a form which accords with a usage of international trade or commerce of which the parties are or ought to have been aware, which is widely known to, and regularly observed by parties to contracts of that type.