Participants in private law relations with a foreign entity may enter into a choice of court agreement to determine the jurisdiction of cases in disputes that have arisen or may arise between them.
This possibility is provided by the law "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine in Connection with the Ratification of the Convention on Choice of Court Agreements" dated September 21, 2022 No. 2627-IX, informs " Law and Business ".
It also provides that the agreement on the choice of court is concluded in writing, regardless of the place of its conclusion. The agreement on the choice of court, by which the court of Ukraine is chosen, is concluded in writing in accordance with the law of Ukraine. However, such an agreement cannot provide for a change in the exclusive jurisdiction of a case with a foreign element to the courts of Ukraine.
The law stipulates that the invalidity of the deed, the constituent part of which is the agreement on the choice of court, does not entail the invalidity of the agreement on the choice of court. Jurisdiction of cases with a foreign element is determined at the time of the opening of the proceedings, even if the grounds for such jurisdiction subsequently disappeared or changed.
At the same time, the court must refuse to open proceedings if the jurisdictional body of a foreign state has a case related to a dispute between the same parties, about the same subject and on the same grounds, and the existence of such grounds became known to the court before the opening of proceedings in the case. If this became known after the opening of the proceedings, the court should leave the claim without consideration.