18 Jurisdiction under the Common Law Rules

Subject(s):

Injunctions to restrain proceedings in England and Wales — Jurisdiction under the Common Law Rules

This chapter looks at jurisdiction under the common law rules. The ‘common law’ rules of jurisdiction apply where the subject matter of the proceedings is outside the material scope of the Brussels–Lugano regime, and also, through Article 6 of the Brussels I Recast, where the defendant is domiciled outside the Brussels–Lugano zone. Jurisdiction under the common law rules is based on service of originating process on the defendant. However, at common law, proceedings can only be served within ‘the jurisdiction’, that is England and Wales, unless there is statutory authority permitting service out of the jurisdiction. The common law rules of jurisdiction therefore consist, in essence, of the rules by which service may be effected within the jurisdiction; and the rules which give the Court power to grant permission to serve proceedings out of the jurisdiction.