Tacit choice of law in international commercial contracts: an analysis of Asian jurisdictions and the Asian Principles of Private International Law

Abstract

This article analyses the determination of a tacit choice of law in international commercial contracts in China (including Hong Kong), Japan, Singapore, and South Korea (the Republic of Korea). The article also examines the proposed Asian Principles of Private International Law (APPIL). The APPIL is intended as a model for Asian jurisdictions to interpret or supplement their private international law rules. Legislators in these jurisdictions may also use it to enact their own statutes on private international law. In the globalized era, the need for certainty regarding the rules and principles of choice of law is of the utmost importance in international commercial contracts. The APPIL may prove particularly useful in bringing more clarity to the issues related to the determination of a tacit choice of law in the region.