Can the parties to a confidentiality agreement choose what court have jurisdiction to know about any dispute related to the contract and the law applicable to the contract?
Yes. Regulation 44/2001 (Brussels I Regulation) allows the parties to a confidentiality agreement to choose which national court in a Member State have jurisdiction to know about the dispute to the contract. Some requirements need to be met: a) at least one of the parties must be domiciled in a Member State; b) the agreement must be in writing – or can be stored in a durable medium – although other forms are also admissible; c) the national court designated in the agreement must be that of a Member State. In addition, the Rome Convention 1980 and Regulation 539/2008 (Rome I Regulation) – not in force until January 2010 – allow the parties to choose the national law applicable to the contract. The parties can choose whichever national law they prefer (it does not have to be that of a Member State) and they do not need to be domiciled in a Member State. The choice shall be made expressly or clearly demonstrated by the terms of the contract or the circumstances of the case. Model confiden
