Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Court Rulings

In practice, situations do arise at times in which particular judicial acts are adopted by foreign courts that apply to Russian citizens or companies. Procedural law provides the general procedure under which such the recognition and enforcement of such rulings is handled.

• In order for the recognition of a foreign court ruling or enforcement to be considered, one must submit a petition to this effect to a Russian court. At square one, one first needs to determine which court one needs to address.
• If the ruling that was made was with reference to an economic dispute or another issue falling under the umbrella of entrepreneurial activities, the petition is to be submitted to a commercial court according to general jurisdiction rules: in the majority of cases that’s at the defendant's location.
• If it was a ruling on a civil case that was made, the petition is to be submitted to a general jurisdiction court at the defendant's location.

As a general rule, the submitted petition must have the following documents attached to it:

• 1) a copy for the foreign court ruling certified by the foreign court entailing permission of its enforcement with respect to which the petition has been created;
• 2) an official document that the ruling has entered into legal force, unless it follows from the text of the ruling itself (not all countries issue their court acts with a note of entry into legal force in the same way that it's done in Russia);
• 3) a ruling enforcement document (if it was previously enforced on the territory of the corresponding foreign nation);
• 4) a document from which it follows that the party that the ruling was made against and that didn't take part in the processes was duly notified in a timely fashion regarding the time and location that the case would be examined;
• 5) a notarized translation of a copy of the foreign court's ruling and of the document from which it follows that the ruling has entered into legal force as well as a document on the ruling's enforcement.

An additional package of documents may also be envisaged which are to be attached to the petition under the international agreements of the Russian Federation. For that reason, it’s advisable that you study in advance international agreements concluded with the foreign nation regarding the enforcement of the ruling on which the filer is petitioning. In the case that no such agreements exist, one must use the procedural law requirements of the Russian Federation as one's guide.

The petition and the documents attached to it are examined by the court in an open hearing along with summonses to the parties. Each participant must be notified of the place and time that the issue will be examined regarding recognition and enforcement of the foreign court’s ruling. Failure to appear in court shall not impede examination of the petition and the court from making a ruling.

In light of the results of the petition's examination and after both parties have presented their cases, the court makes a ruling to recognize and enforce the foreign court's ruling or to reject it. Meanwhile, the court does not in essence review the foreign court's decision.

REMEMBER! It’s a wise move to involve a Russian lawyer as early as the examination stage of the foreign court dispute to coordinate the wording of the presented demands. Otherwise, it may turn out that the foreign court ruling has taken place yet it cannot be enforced on the territory of the Russian Federation due to there being no compulsory enforcement mechanism in place.

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