Glossary · Swiss and international law
General forum — actor sequitur forum rei
Procedural principle under which the plaintiff must, as a rule, sue before the court of the defendant's domicile.
Reference : LDIP art. 2
Unless a special rule provides otherwise, the Swiss courts have jurisdiction where the defendant is domiciled in Switzerland (art. 2 PILA). This base rule — actor sequitur forum rei — is displaced only by special fora: patrimonial matters, contract, divorce, succession.
In family disputes, art. 59 PILA combines the defendant’s forum with accommodation fora (one-year residence of the petitioner, Swiss nationality).