Brussels Regulation

The Brussels Regulation Regulation 44/2001 is full of great stuff for IP litigators - that forum shopping stuff that forces all the best law firms to have an office in The Hague. However, there are ominous signs that it is going to be hacked about a bit - see this Commission Press Release. Is "Brussels II" on the way? Why else would the Press Release call the one we've got "Brussels I"? One of the things they're addressing is "certain imperfections in the application of certain rules of the Regulation, such as avoiding parallel proceedings in different Member States ...", so forum shopping is definitely on the menu. Consultation will end on 30th June, with a view to legislating by the end of the year - watch this space.