Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2002:499
Date: 2002-09-17
Language of the case: Italian
Court formation: Full Court
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Brussels Convention of 27 September 1968;Brussels Convention of 27 September 1968 - Jurisdiction
Concepts: Jurisdiction in matters relating to tort, delict or quasi-delict
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Italy

Summary of the Judgment 
Convention on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Judgments — Special jurisdiction — 
Jurisdiction 'in matters relating to tort, delict or quasi-delict' — Definition — Action in 
pre-contractual liability founded on breach of rules of law during negotiations with a view 
to the formation of a contract — Included 
(Brussels Convention of 27 September 1968, Art. 5(3)) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-334/00 
In circumstances characterised by the 
absence of obligations freely assumed by 
one party towards another on the occasion 
of negotiations with a view to the 
formation of a contract and by a possible 
breach of rules of law, in particular the rule 
which requires the parties to act in good 
faith in such negotiations, an action 
founded on the pre-contractual liability of 
the defendant is a matter relating to tort, 
delict or quasi-delict within the meaning of 
Article 5(3) of the Convention of 27 Sep­
tember 1968 on Jurisdiction and the 
Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and 
Commercial Matters, as amended by the 
Convention of 9 October 1978 on the 
Accession of the Kingdom of Denmark, 
Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great 
Britain and Northern Ireland, by the Con­
vention of 25 October 1982 on the Acces­
sion of the Hellenic Republic and by the 
Convention of 26 May 1989 on the Acces­
sion of the Kingdom of Spain and the 
Portuguese Republic. 
(see para. 27, operative part) 
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