ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of the book. The book deals with matters of common interest to both the rules on jurisdiction and the rules on choice of law, namely, the history of the development of these rules. Questions of private international law loom large in reinsurance and insurance disputes, as witnessed by the sheer volume of reported cases concerning conflicts of law and (re)insurance. Time was when these jurisdiction and choice of law questions were the more-or-less exclusive province of the common law. This is certainly now no longer the case. The past two decades have seen a progressive displacement of these common law principles in favour of European laws. The European rules are by contrast tightly formulated to deal with specific issues or questions. Of critical importance is the characterisation of the relevant question or issue, as this will determine which rules will resolve that issue.
