The CJEU’s Wunner judgment on Rome II and company directors’ tort liability for losses incurred by online gamblers

The article analyses the long-awaited Wunner judgment, where the Court of Justice addressed for the first time the interpretation of the lex societatis exception in article 1(2)(d) and the localisation of the locus damni pursuant to article 4(1) of the Rome II Regulation in the context of a claim brought by an Austrian gambler directly against company directors domiciled in Malta for losses suffered from unlicensed online gambling. The judgment is also relevant for the interpretation of the forum delicti in article 7(2) of the Brussels I-bis Regulation in light of the principle of consistent interpretation mandated by Recital 7 of the Rome II Regulation.