The Rome II Regulation and Choice of Law in Internet-Based Violations of Privacy and Personality Rights – On the Wrong Track, but in the Right Direction?

The current situation in Europe is that each country’s domestic choice of law rules determine the applicable law in relation to non-contractual obligations arising out of violations of privacy and rights relating to personality, including defamation. While natural in view of how the law in this fi eld has evolved, this system is cumbersome in the extreme. It creates an often prohibitive obstacle for cross-border litigation, and places a heavy burden on those who engage in cross-border distribution of information, not least major newspapers, TV stations and other mass media outlets.