This volume of the Proceedings of the Nineteenth Session of the Hague Conference on Private International Law encompasses all preparatory work and records of meetings which led to the adoption of the Hague Convention on the Law Applicable to Certain Rights in Respect of Securities held with an Intermediary (the Hague Securities Convention). The signing of this Convention on 5 July 2006 by two of the world's major financial markets, the United States and Switzerland, shows the relevance of the new treaty. Traditional rules, based on physical transfers and direct holdings, are too diverse and inadequate to deal with securities which are nowadays transferred and pledged by electronic entries to accounts with clearing and settlement systems and other intermediaries. By identifying specific conflict rules, the Hague Securities Convention provides a means to remedy this lack of legal certainty which has characterized for too long the field of security transactions. The Proceedings will enable the financial world, but also legal practitioners and academics to grasp the background and full objectives of this very innovative international instrument.

The first essay of this volume is written by Hans van Loon, who was the Secretary-General of The Hague Conference of Private International Law (HCCH) from 30 June 1996 to 30 June 2013, and who steered the Conference during a time of global expansion and transformation. He has been a forerunner in the formulation of modern private international law through multilateral treaties and was involved in the development of nine Hague Conventions, as well as the revision of the Statute of the Hague Conference. The continued relevance of the Hague Conference in the 21st century is in large part due to his commitment to the field of private international law and his awareness of its role in a broader social context. In recent years, private international law has become intertwined with public international law. Van Loon's essay on "At the Cross-Roads of Public and Private International Law - The Hague Conference on Private International [and its Work]" evidences that the system of modern international law is inseparable from private international law. One of the most highly qualified figures in international marine environment law is Prof. Bimal N. Patel, Director and Professor of Public International Law, Gujarat National Law University in India. The protection and preservation of the marine environment has been the subject of global and regional cooperation within the framework of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other multilateral treaties thereof. Prof. Patel's essay on "Marine Environment Law and Practice of China, India, Japan and Korea" provides a timely study of the material sources of international marine environmental law. Prof. Ernst-Ulrich Petersmann has been a pioneer in formulating the material part of international economic law in each of its developmental stage. His essays display remarkable intellectual vitality, illustrating his new initiatives in the subject of international economic law. He was first invited to lecture at the Xiamen summer programme in 2006, on "New Dimensions of International Economic Law", and he was again invited to deliver a lecture on "Methodological Problems in International Trade, Investment and Health Law and Adjudication" at the commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the establishment of Xiamen Academy in 2015. With his practical experience with the World Trade Organization (WTO), and teaching and research at the European University Institute in Florence, Prof. Petersmann has not only promoted and illuminated public international economic law, he is also one of a group of highly qualified scholars who have been writing and collaborating with others in order to lay the foundation of modern international economic law.

Is Private International Law (PIL) still fit to serve its function in today’s global environment? In light of some calls for radical changes to its very foundations, this timely book investigates the ability of PIL to handle contemporary and international problems, and inspires genuine debate on the future of the field.

The contributions contained in these conference proceedings illustrate how the existing and future regulatory framework operates for online business transactions. Legal Aspects of an E-Commerce Transaction examines various national and international laws and treaties as well as European Community law. The book looks at self-regulatory codes of conduct elaborated by business organizations relating to advertising, spam, competition, and the use of intellectual property rights, to the conclusion of online contracts and their performance. Additionally, post-contractual issues, dispute resolution, and taxation are discussed, and their interaction is examined. Rules on electronic payment, electronic invoicing, and the taxation of electronic business transactions are equally addressed.

From 2005 on the Yearbook of Private International Law is published by S.ELP in cooperation with the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law. This English-language annual publication provides analysis and information on private international law developments world-wide. The Editors commission articles of enduring importance concerning the most significant trends in the field. The Yearbook also devotes attention to the important work and research carried out in the context of the Hague Conference, The Hague Academy, UNCITRAL and UNIDROIT. The authority of the editors and the lasting nature of the works included make the Yearbook an integral addition to the libraries of international law scholars and practitioners.