Welcome to the Private International Law site, maintained by the Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Private International Law (L/PIL) at the U.S. Department of State. L/PIL is responsible for the negotiation and conclusion of international conventions, model laws and rules, legislative guides, and other instruments governing private transactions that cross international borders. For Current Developments, see below.
This website is intended to provide a convenient location to find information regarding private international law in areas such as trade, finance and banking; judicial assistance; arbitration and judgments; matters involving families and children; and wills, trusts and estates.
The database accessible on this page is organized into the following categories:
Commercial Law
Judicial Assistance
Arbitration and Judgments
Family Law
Wills, Trusts and Estates
General Resources
The categories (other than General Resources) generally contain the following subheadings:
PIL conventions to which the U.S. is a party
PIL conventions for which U.S. ratification/accession is under consideration
Other PIL conventions (illustrative only – not meant to be comprehensive)
Other PIL instruments (e.g., model laws, legislative guides, etc.)
Work in progress
For links to specific conventions or other instruments, please refer to the listings under General Resources for the relevant intergovernmental organizations concerned with the unification and development of private international law: the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL); the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCOPIL); the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT); and the Organization of American States (OAS).
In addition, the “Current Developments” section below, which is updated quarterly, provides information on current negotiations and projects, the U.S. Government position on certain matters, and upcoming events.
Persons or organizations wishing to comment on this website or to otherwise contact L/PIL are invited to do so by email, fax or letter to the following:
Keith Loken
Assistant Legal Adviser for Private International Law
Suite 357, South Building
2430 E Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20037-2851
Fax: (202) 776-8482
Email: smeltzertk@state.gov attn: Trish Smeltzer
Current Developments (updated 1-13-12)
2012 annual meeting of the State Department’s Advisory Committee on Private International Law (ACPIL): stay tuned for forthcoming details on dates and venue.
The Private International Law Interest Group of the American Society of International Law is organizing a conference October 5-6, 2012 to discuss papers submitted on the topic
“What is Private International Law?” The deadline for submission of papers is May 15. More information regarding the call for papers and the conference can be found at http://www.asil.org/files/29/ASIL_PILIG_CFP2012.pdf.
Recent events:
More than 75 participants attended the annual meeting of the State Department’s Advisory Committee on Private International Law (ACPIL) held at Georgetown University Law Center September 22-23, 2011. GULC Dean William Treanor and Department of State Legal Adviser Harold Hongju Koh welcomed the group. Participants heard panel presentations on a variety of current topics, including private international law developments in the European Union, trends in international family law, and new initiatives in electronic commerce, as well as current developments in the OAS, UNIDROIT, UNCITRAL and the Hague Conference on Private International Law. Professor Ed Swaine gave a luncheon talk on U.S. federalism and private international law.
September 26-27, Canada hosted in Ottawa the annual meeting of the NAFTA Advisory Committee on Private Commercial Disputes (“NAFTA 2022 Committee”). The participants established a number of task forces to carry out the Committee’s work plan for the coming year, designed to boost awareness and use of alternative dispute resolution to boost trade and investment in the NAFTA region.
Several UNCITRAL working groups met in Vienna during the fall. Working Group II (Arbitration and Conciliation) continued work on the development of transparency rules for use in treaty-based investor-State arbitration. It is hoped that those rules might be completed at the February 2012 session of that working group. Working Group III (Online Dispute Resolution) made progress in drafting procedural rules to promote the efficient resolution of disputes arising from high-volume, low-value electronic commerce transactions that cross borders. Working Group IV (Electronic Commerce), convening for the first time in several years, took up new work on electronic transferable records. The UNCITRAL Secretariat is currently researching existing rules and practice regarding the use of such records. Working Group V (Insolvency Law) met to discuss two topics: the interpretation and application of the concept of Center of Main Interests (COMI) in cross-border insolvency, and the responsibilities and liabilities of directors in insolvency cases. Working Group VI (Security Interests) continued its discussions of a possible instrument regarding the registration of security rights in movable assets.
During the UN General Assembly session in the fall, it was determined to maintain UNCITRAL’s historical practice of alternating its meeting sites between Vienna and New York.
UNIDROIT held a colloquium November 8-10 on the private law aspects of agricultural financing. Among the possibilities discussed was a protocol to the Cape Town Convention on the financing of agricultural equipment. UNIDROIT will continue, in consultation with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to consider potential projects to boost global agricultural production. The colloquium was followed by a one-day meeting on potential liabilities attaching to use of GPS-type signals and location data.
November 17-18, the Hague Conference on Private International Law convened a working group to consider issues relating to the provision of technical assistance to countries relating to implementation of Hague conventions.
Looking ahead:
- On January 20, the Office of Private International Law will host a public meeting of the ACPIL study group on online dispute resolution to discuss the ongoing work in UNCITRAL.
- January 25-31, 2012, the Hague Conference on Private International Law will host the second part of the Special Commission on the Hague Child Abduction and Hague Child Protection Conventions.
- UNCITRAL Working Group II (Arbitration and Conciliation) meets in New York February 6-10.
- UNIDROIT will host a study group February 7-9 on principles and rules on the netting of financial instruments.
- A diplomatic conference organized by UNIDROIT, to be held in Berlin February 27-March 9, will consider adoption of a Cape Town Convention protocol on space finance.
- UNIDROIT is organizing a meeting in Rio de Janeiro March 27-28 that will include a capital markets colloquium and assistance in efforts to promote ratification of the 2009 Geneva Securities Convention.
- The annual meeting of the American Society of International Law will be held March 28-31 in Washington, DC.
Recent ACPIL meetings:
1) Public meeting on electronic commerce
A public meeting on electronic commerce was held, under the auspices of the Advisory Committee on Private International Law, on September 30, 2011, in the Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Private International Law, 2430 E Street, N.W., SA-4, South Building, Washington DC. The meeting was chaired by a representative of the Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Private International Law.
The meeting was convened to discuss upcoming work of Working Group IV (international electronic commerce) of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). At its 2011 meeting, the Commission decided that the Working Group should be reactivated to undertake work in the area of electronic transferable records. The attendees discussed potential work of the Working Group in that regard as well as a recommendation being considered by the United Nations Center for Trade Facilitation and E-business on Signed Digital Evidence Interoperability.
No matter was resolved. No report was approved.
2) Public meeting on online dispute resolution
A public meeting of the Study Group on Online Dispute Resolution was held under the auspices of the Advisory Committee on Private International Law on October 28, 2011, at the State Department, Office of Private International Law, South Building, 23rd and C Streets, N.W.,Washington, DC. The meeting was chaired by a representative of the Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Private International Law.
The meeting was convened to discuss work in UNCITRAL on the development of online dispute resolution (ODR) legal instruments for resolving both business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C) cross-border e-commerce disputes, in anticipation of a third meeting of the UNCITRAL Working Group on online dispute resolution scheduled to take place in Vienna, November 14-18. The Working Group was established by the Commission in July 2010 pursuant to a U.S. proposal. The UNCITRAL Working Group is preparing generic ODR procedural rules applicable to low value, high volume cross-border e-commerce transactions as well as annexes on guidelines and minimum requirements for ODR providers and arbitrators, substantive legal principles for resolving disputes, and a cross-border enforcement mechanism.
The Study Group reviewed the proposed draft UNCITRAL generic ODR procedural rules.
No matter was resolved. No report was approved. The Study Group will meet again January 20.
