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Message: [QUOTE="Dexter, post: 2909214, member: 1978"] Does this apply to the USA? or only the UK and NZ [SIZE=4][B]STATUTORY ENFORCEMENT[/B][/SIZE] In Australia, a foreign judgment can be enforced by registering the judgment under Part 2 of the [I]Foreign Judgments Act 1991[/I] (Cth) (the Act). The key points under the Act are: [LIST] [*]The Act operates in an administrative fashion and, subject to evidentiary requirements being satisfied, allows the judgment creditor to register the foreign judgment without the need to commence fresh proceedings in Australia. [*]The judgment creditor is usually able to apply to enforce a foreign judgment on an ex partebasis or by naming the judgment debtor as a defendant in its application (without the need effect service of the application). [*]The judgment debtor may make an application to set aside the registration of the foreign judgment under section 7 of the Act for reasons that include the judgment debtor having been denied natural justice; there having been fraud on the part of the judgment creditor; or the foreign judgment having been satisfied. [*]The Act is based upon reciprocity of enforcement and to be enforceable, the foreign judgment must be issued by a country or court set out in the [I]Foreign Judgments Regulations 1992[/I] (Cth) (the Regulations).[U][B][I] For example, the United States of America (USA) is not listed in the Regulations, meaning a judgment from an American court is not enforceable under the Act.[/I][/B][/U] [*]The foreign judgment sought to be enforced under the Act must be a "money judgment" (defined under section 1 of the Act as foreign judgments under which money is payable) of the superior courts and some inferior courts of certain foreign countries. Certain "non-money judgments" issued by New Zealand courts may also be enforced under the Act [/LIST] and then there is this, all too hard for this poster The USA and Australia have long enjoyed a close relationship, so it is somewhat surprising that they have not made a bilateral arrangement for the enforcement of each other's judgments. Countries with weaker connections to Australia have made bilateral arrangements allowing them to enjoy the benefits of the Foreign Judgments Act 1991 (Cth) when it comes to enforcing judgments of their domestic courts in Australia. A party seeking to enforce a US judgment in Australia must instead rely on the common law principles for recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. The good news is that the common law requirements are at least reasonably settled. [B]What US judgments can be enforced in Australia?[/B] To be capable of enforcement in Australia, a US judgment must satisfy six requirements: [LIST] [*]it must be final and conclusive; [*]there must be an identity of the parties; [*]if it is a judgment in personam, it must be for a fixed debt or readily calculable sum; [*]the US court must have exercised jurisdiction in the international sense as recognised by Australian courts; [*]it must not be wholly satisfied; and [*]it must have been obtained within the last 12 years. [/LIST] To enforce a US judgment in Australia the plaintiff must prove that the US court exercised jurisdiction over the judgment debtor which is recognised by Australian courts. This is often called "jurisdiction in the international sense". Under Australian common law rules a US court will be deemed to have exercised the relevant jurisdiction if: [LIST] [*]the defendant [B]voluntarily submitted[/B] to the court's jurisdiction; or [*]the defendant was [B]ordinarily resident or present[/B] in the US at the time that he or she was served with the originating process. [/LIST] [B]Conclusion[/B] Although there is no treaty between the USA and Australia concerning the enforcement of judgments, US money judgments can be enforced in Australia under the common law procedure. To maximise the prospects of being able to enforce a US judgment in Australia, US attorneys may wish to consider obtaining legal advice from Australian lawyers at an early stage in the US proceedings. Enforcement strategy is often an afterthought in litigation, but in our experience you can save time and costs by developing your enforcement strategy at the beginning of a case. [/QUOTE]

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