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NLJ this week: Hague 2019 enters force—but will it deliver consistency?

11 July 2025
Issue: 8124 / Categories: Legal News , Commercial , Jurisdiction , Dispute resolution , International
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In this week’s NLJ, Ben Roe of Baker McKenzie explores the UK’s adoption of the Hague Judgments Convention 2019, which came into force on 1 July

The convention simplifies cross-border enforcement of civil and commercial judgments, plugging post-Brexit gaps left by the Brussels and Lugano regimes. Hague 2019 complements Hague 2005 (on jurisdiction clauses) and introduces a new CPR 74.4(7) process for registration.

However, Roe warns of challenges: the convention excludes key areas like IP, family law, and arbitration, and relies on ‘indirect jurisdictional filters’ that may be inconsistently applied. Without a central interpretive body like the CJEU, national courts may diverge on key definitions, risking fragmentation. Article 29 opt-outs could further erode multilateralism.

While the convention is a step forward, its success hinges on judicial coherence and broader international uptake—especially from the US, which has signed but not ratified. 

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Mourant—Stephen Alexander

Mourant—Stephen Alexander

Jersey litigation lead appointed to global STEP Council

mfg Solicitors—nine trainees

mfg Solicitors—nine trainees

Firm invests in future talent with new training cohort

360 Law Group—Anthony Gahan

360 Law Group—Anthony Gahan

Investment banking veteran appointed as chairman to drive global growth

NEWS
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
In this week's NLJ, Steven Ball of Red Lion Chambers unpacks how advances in forensic science finally unmasked Ryland Headley, jailed in 2025 for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. Preserved swabs and palm prints lay dormant for decades until DNA-17 profiling produced a billion-to-one match
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
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