7.1 Common law jurisdiction rules remain important in relation to reinsurance and insurance because of the prevalence of business in non-EU countries such as the USA, Japan, China, Korea, Russia and Commonwealth countries. In this chapter we deal with the jurisdiction rules applicable under English law where the Brussels Regulation does not apply. By way of a convenient and commonly used shorthand we refer to this law as the common law, as distinct from the law contained in the European legislation, although all the court’s exorbitant jurisdiction derives from statute and there may be other particular English legislation which is relevant. The usage is justified because the principles in this area have been and continue to be very largely developed by the courts.