Foreign contact
Foreign contact , also foreign relationship or foreign relationship , describes the basic prerequisite for a matter to be judged in court for the application of international private law (IPR) and international civil procedure law (IZVR) . A "foreign element" is a situation when this relationship to the law of a foreign state has.
According to Art. 3 I 1 EGBGB under foreign contact the "connection to the law of a foreign state" is to be understood.
Only the international contact of a situation opens up the applicability of the provisions of the German IPR according to Art. 3 ff. EGBGB according to Art. 3 I 1 EGBGB.
Elements that justify the foreign connection of a matter are typically the foreign nationality of at least one of the participants, the domicile or abode of a natural person or the place of business of a company , the location of a thing, the place of conclusion or performance of a contract abroad or the foreign crime scene an illegal act .
If there is a foreign connection of a matter, in addition to the local and factual jurisdiction of German courts, the question of whether the court seised has international jurisdiction at all must be clarified. International civil procedural law answers this question. Above all, it is important for the defendant because it decides whether he has to defend himself at all before the court.
