Contents - Faculty of Law - University of Cambridge

ased upon one or two leading cases, will be set in advance of each meeting and supplemented by additional, follow-upreading.A prior knowledge of Conflict of Laws or Civil Procedure is not necessary but is advantageous.The structure of the course reflects the consecutive stages of an international commercial dispute. The following topicsreceive special attention:1. Introduction to international litigation: the strategy and practice of forum selection. The dynamics of internationallitigation. The operation of the Commercial Court.2. The jurisdiction of the English Courts: jurisdiction and the staying of actions. The traditional approach of Englishlaw. The 1968 Brussels Convention on jurisdiction and enforcement of judgments.3. Granting interim relief: the nature and extent of Mareva Injunctions.4. The applicable law in commercial disputes: choice of law in contract.5. Foreign proceedings and the English courts: Negative declarations. Antisuit injunctions. The enforcement offoreign judgements.READINGChs. 10 to 16 of Cheshire and North’s Private International Law (13th ed 1999) offer an excellent introduction to somecentral themes of the course. Although somewhat specialised in nature, the following readings provide additional insightsinto the nature and concerns of the subject:Collins, The Territorial Reach of Mareva Injunctions (1989) LQR 262 (the classic study of an important remedy ininternational disputes)The Spiliada [1987] AC 460; [1986] 3 All ER 843 (the landmark case in the law of international jurisdiction)Adams v. Cape Industries Plc [1990] Ch. 433; [1991] 1 All ER 929 (a case concerning the enforcement of a US judgmentin England)PAPER 4. THE LAW OF RESTITUTION1. Introduction: An analysis of the nature and ambit of the law of restitution and the essential principles on which thesubject is founded. The validity of the subject. Alternative approaches. Identification of restitutionary remedies.2. The unjust enrichment principle: the nature of the principle. The identification and valuation of enrichment. Thenotion of enrichment being at the expense of the claimant. The principles underlying the recognition of grounds ofrestitution. Absence of basis or presence of basis?3. The grounds of restitution:(a) Mistake. Whether ignorance is a ground of restitution. Specific defences to restitutionary claims grounded onmistake.(b) Failure of consideration: total, partial and absence of consideration.(c) Recovery of benefits conferred under compulsion: duress of the person, duress of goods, economic duressand legal compulsion.82