For EU jurisdictions, Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 on jurisdiction and recognition and enforcement of judgments (the Brussels I Regulation) and the 2005 Hague Choice of Court Convention (the 2005 Choice of Court Convention) are the pivotal instruments to assess “consent to jurisdiction” in a choice of court agreement. This Article examines the symmetries in both instruments. The relevant rules combine inferred consent with a residual reference to the law of the chosen court, as opposed to providing a uniform substantive standard on the notion of “consent” to jurisdiction. The practical operation of this hybrid solution is examined by reference to the relevant case law of CJEU and selected domestic courts. The Article then considers specific matters where consistency between the two regimes is uncertain. In conclusion, while alignment on consent to jurisdiction under the Brussels I Regulation and the 2005 Choice of Court Convention is desirable, it is expected that autonomous standards on consent to jurisdiction will be consolidated within the respective scopes of application of the instruments under review.
