Florida Senate - 2010                             CS for SB 1962
       
       
       
       By the Committee on Commerce; and Senator Baker
       
       
       
       
       577-04360A-10                                         20101962c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to application of foreign law;
    3         creating s. 45.022, F.S.; defining the term “foreign
    4         law, legal code, or system”; specifying the public
    5         policy of this state in granting comity to a decision
    6         rendered under any foreign law, legal code, or system;
    7         specifying the public policy of this state in applying
    8         the choice of a foreign law, legal code, or system
    9         under certain circumstances; providing for the
   10         construction of a waiver by a natural person of the
   11         person’s constitutional rights; specifying the public
   12         policy of this state for interpreting a contract,
   13         arbitration agreement, or other agreement providing a
   14         choice of venue or forum outside any state or
   15         territory of the United States; specifying the public
   16         policy of this state to deny certain claims of forum
   17         non conveniens or a related claim if granting the
   18         claim would lead to the violation of a natural
   19         person’s constitutional rights; providing that the act
   20         does not apply to a corporation, partnership, or other
   21         form of business association; clarifying that the
   22         public policies expressed in the act apply to
   23         violations of a natural person’s constitutional
   24         rights; providing for severability; providing an
   25         effective date.
   26  
   27  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   28  
   29         Section 1. Section 45.022, Florida Statutes, is created to
   30  read:
   31         45.022Provisions contrary to public policy.—
   32         (1) As used in this section, the term “foreign law, legal
   33  code, or system” means any law, legal code, or system of a
   34  jurisdiction outside any state or territory of the United
   35  States, including, but not limited to, international
   36  organizations or tribunals, and applied by that jurisdiction’s
   37  courts, administrative bodies, or other formal or informal
   38  tribunals.
   39         (2)It is the public policy of this state that the primary
   40  factor that a court, administrative agency, arbitrator,
   41  mediator, or other entity or person acting under the authority
   42  of state law must consider in granting comity to a decision
   43  rendered under any foreign law, legal code, or system against a
   44  natural person in this state is whether the decision rendered
   45  violates or would violate any right of the natural person
   46  guaranteed by the State Constitution or the Constitution of the
   47  United States or any statute or decisions under those
   48  constitutions.
   49         (3)(a)If any contract, arbitration agreement, or other
   50  agreement provides for the choice of a foreign law, legal code,
   51  or system to govern its interpretation or the resolution of any
   52  claim or dispute and the enforcement or interpretation of the
   53  contract, arbitration agreement, or other agreement applying
   54  that choice of law provision results or would result in a
   55  violation of any right guaranteed by the State Constitution or
   56  the Constitution of the United States, it is the public policy
   57  of this state that the primary factor in interpretation,
   58  enforcement, or application of the contract, arbitration
   59  agreement, or other agreement be preservation of the
   60  constitutional rights of a natural person in this state against
   61  whom enforcement is sought.
   62         (b) This subsection does not limit the right of a natural
   63  person in this state to voluntarily restrict or limit his or her
   64  constitutional rights by contract or specific waiver consistent
   65  with constitutional principles, but the language of any such
   66  contract or other waiver must be strictly construed in favor of
   67  preserving the natural person’s constitutional rights.
   68         (4)(a) If any contract, arbitration agreement, or other
   69  agreement provides for the choice of venue or forum outside any
   70  state or territory of the United States and the enforcement or
   71  interpretation of the contract, arbitration agreement, or other
   72  agreement applying that choice of venue or forum provision
   73  results or would result in a violation of any right guaranteed
   74  by the State Constitution or the Constitution of the United
   75  States, it is the public policy of this state that, in
   76  interpreting or construing the contract, arbitration agreement,
   77  or other agreement, the primary factor to be considered is
   78  whether it can be interpreted or construed to preserve the
   79  constitutional rights of the natural person in this state
   80  against whom enforcement is sought.
   81         (b) If a natural person who is subject to personal
   82  jurisdiction in this state seeks to maintain litigation,
   83  arbitration, agency, or similarly binding proceedings in this
   84  state and the courts of this state find that granting a claim of
   85  forum non conveniens or a related claim violates or would likely
   86  lead to the violation of the constitutional rights of the
   87  nonclaimant in the foreign forum with respect to the matter in
   88  dispute, it is the public policy of this state that the claim be
   89  denied.
   90         (5) Without prejudice to any other legal right, this
   91  section does not apply to a corporation, partnership, or other
   92  form of business association.
   93         (6)The public policies expressed in this section apply
   94  only to actual or foreseeable violations of a natural person’s
   95  constitutional rights from the foreign law, legal code, or
   96  system.
   97         (7) If any provision of this section or its application to
   98  any natural person or circumstance is held invalid, the
   99  invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of
  100  this section which can be given effect, and to that end the
  101  provisions of this act are severable.
  102         Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.