Validity of a Jurisdiction Clause in an International Contract

Facts

Gallery X. brought an action against T. Inc. before the Commercial Court of the Canton of Bern for the payment of CHF 1,887,975 plus interest, following the purchase at auction by T. Inc. of a graphic work by Pablo Picasso on 22 June 1990. The Commercial Court dismissed the claim for lack of territorial jurisdiction. Gallery X. appealed against this judgment to the Federal Tribunal.

Considerations

The Federal Tribunal considered that the jurisdiction clause invoked by Gallery X. was not valid within the meaning of Art. 5(1) PILA, as T. Inc. had not accepted this clause in writing or in another form allowing proof thereof. Although the formal requirements set out in Art. 5 PILA are stricter than those provided for by the European Conventions on Judicial Jurisdiction, they also apply to merchants.

Furthermore, the Federal Tribunal ruled that the Lugano Convention on Judicial…