EU law and private international law : the interrelationship in contractual obligations / by Jan-Jaap Kuipers.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction : EU private international law -- Rome I regulation : party autonomy as its cornerstone -- Overriding mandatory provisions : the national perspective -- The scope of secondary union law : a matter for Rome I? -- The harmonisation of contract law by the union -- Free movement and the determination of the applicable law.

The Rome I Regulation on the Law Applicable to Contractual Obligations has unified the conflict of laws rules of the Member States. The influence of the European Union upon Private International Law goes beyond positive harmonisation however. There is a certain tension between European law and PIL. European law is concerned with whether the imposition of a rule constitutes a restriction to the internal market whereas PIL does not seek to neutralise the disadvantages that result from differences between national laws but instead tries to locate the geographical centre of the legal relationship. The present book attempts to identify the methodological disharmony between the two legal disciplines in the regulation of cross border contracts and proposes suggestions to enhance their mutual understanding.