Rome Convention

Article 7

Mandatory rules

1. When applying under this Convention the law of a country, effect may be given to the mandatory rules of the law of another country with which the situation has a close connection, if and in so far as, under the law of the latter country, those rules must be applied whatever the law applicable to the contract. In considering whether to give effect to these mandatory rules, regard shall be had to their nature and purpose and to the consequences of their application or non-application.

2. Nothing in this Convention shall restrict the application of the rules of the law of the forum in a situation where they are mandatory irrespective of the law otherwise applicable to the contract.

Holdings

C-184/1217 Oct 2013

United Antwerp Maritime Agencies (Unamar) NV v Navigation Maritime Bulgare

The court seised may set aside the parties' choice of the law of a Member State that meets the minimum protection required by Directive 86/653/EEC and apply the law of the forum instead, because the forum treats its rules on self-employed commercial agents as mandatory, only if - after a detailed assessment - it finds that, when implementing that directive, the forum legislature considered it crucial to give commercial agents protection going beyond the directive, taking account of the nature and objective of those mandatory provisions.