The Legal Impacts of COVID-19 in the Travel, Tourism and Hospitality Industry

Dr Nino Sievi’s “Report on International Instruments and Principles Relevant to the Tourism Project as well as Possible Grounds of Jurisdiction for Matters Relating to International Tourists” concludes that: 1) there is a gap in the legal framework due to inadmissibility of commencing or continuing legal proceedings from abroad – “A tourist is often not able to commence or pursue a legal case in a foreign jurisdiction ” –, and reinforcing the findings of Dr Guinchard’s Report; 2) the Hague Conference is the right forum to establish methods of co-operation also in civil and commercial international cases, like the international tourists; 3) an interesting suggestion to a Protocol to the 1985 Hague Access to justice convention (“ addressing out-of-court procedures ” and tourist issues) was made; and 4) Advocate – a new suggestion to the protection of international tourists only “ on providing the required legal frame-work for ODR platforms or LegalTech tools. In particular, the enforceability of agreements and decisions reached via ODR must be ensured ”. The Final Report came in February 2020, and the next Expert Group meeting will be in October 2020. The first proposal of a hard law is now turning to a soft law or an autonomous Protocol to the 1980 Hague Access to Justice Convention. III. Final Comments This COVID-19 pandemic crisis has shown that the less developed countries are less prepared for emergent situations, and that global standards (hard law or soft law) would be instrumental. The UNIDROIT 1970 International Convention on Travel Contracts could indeed bring some solutions for Coronavirus crisis as also the UNWTO and the Brazilian Draft Conventions. As the COVID-19 pandemic has triggered an unprecedented crisis in the tourism 72 , it is time, perhaps, to renew the international efforts at the UNWTO and at the Hague Conference to develop international standards to protect international 72 Revised OECD estimates on the COVID-19 impact point to 60% decline in international tourism in 2020, see OECD, Tourism Policy Responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) , Updated 2 June 2020, available at https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/tourism-policy-responses-to-the-coronavirus-covid- 19-6466aa20/ ( accessed on 01 July 2020).