Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments:National and Regional Dimensions

Abstract

The paper considers the issues of recognizing and enforcing foreign judgments at national and regionallevels of legal regulation. The aim of the research is to study certain aspects of recognizing andenforcing foreign judgments including categories of foreign judgments which are subject to recognitionand enforcement, procedure of recognition and enforcement, grounds for the refusal of recognition andenforcement. It is scrutinized national legislation represented by the Arbitration Procedure Code of theRussian Federation of 2002 and the Civil Procedure Code of the Kyrgyz Republic of 2017; internationaltreaties of regional character (e.g. Minsk convention on legal assistance and legal relations in civil,matrimonial and criminal matters of 1993; Lugano Convention on jurisdiction and the recognition andenforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters of 2007) and legal documents of internationalorganizations (e.g. EU Regulation № 1215/2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcementof judgments in civil and commercial matters of 2012. Applying the comparative research method, theauthors came to the conclusion that foreign judgments subject to recognition and enforcement arestrictly defined in national legislation than in certain international treaties of regional character and EUregulations. The procedure of recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments has been evolvingfrom exequatur issued by court addressed (in national legislation and certain international treatiesof regional character) to its abolishing in certain international treaties of regional character and ECregulations. The grounds for the refusal of recognition and enforcement are strictly limited and includeundue service of documents instituting the proceedings on the defendant not enabling the personto arrange defence; the judgment is irreconcilable with a judgment given between the same parties,on the same subject matter rendered by the court in the state addressed or in another country; if therecognition and enforcement are manifestly contrary to public order in the state addressed.