2.2 Claims against the subsidiary
With regard to claims brought against defendants not domiciled in an EU member state, it follows from art. 6(1) of the Brussels I Regulation that the question of jurisdiction is left for the member state to decide. In other words, the extent to which a subsidiary based in the developing world can be sued in a court in an EU member state will depend on national procedural law.(1) Article 8(1) in the Brussels I Regulation also provides for the possible joinder of cases, provided there is a sufficient connection between the claims. However, this provision only applies to claims brought against defendants based in EU member states. According to the provision, the relevant criterion is whether “the claims are so closely connected that it is expedient to hear and determine them together to avoid the risk of irreconcilable judgments”.
As will be apparent in the following, some national legal systems provide for the opportunity to bring claims against defendants based outside of the EU in a court in an EU member state. Moreover, some jurisdictions allow for claims being brought against a subsidiary based in the developing world in an EU member state, to the extent the claim against the subsidiary is sufficiently connected to the claim against the parent company, turning the claim against the parent company into what has been called an “anchor claim” for the claim against the subsidiary.