Are Foreign Judgments Enforceable in Bangladesh?
Foreign judgements are enforceable under section 44A of the Code of Civil Procedure (“CPC”) provided it has been passed by a superior Court of any reciprocating territory. The Government by notification in the official gazette may declare any country to be the reciprocating territory for the purpose of this section. Section 44A of the CPC, which was inserted by section 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Act, 1937 states as follows:
44A (1) Where a certified copy of a decree of any of the superior Courts of any reciprocating territory has been filed in a District Court, the decree may be executed in Bangladesh as if it had been passed by the District Court.
(2) Together with the certified copy of the decree shall be filed a certificate from such superior Court stating the extent, if any, to which the decree has been satisfied or adjusted and such certificate shall, for the purposes of proceedings under this section, be conclusive proof of the extent of such satisfaction or adjustment.
(3) The provisions of section 47 shall as from the filing of the certified copy of the decree apply to the proceedings of a District Court executing a decree under this section, and the District Court shall refuse execution of any such decree, if it is shown to the satisfaction of the Court that the decree falls within any of the exceptions specified in clauses (a) to (f) of section 13.
By section 14 of the CPC the Court shall presume, upon the production of any document purporting to be a certified copy of a foreign judgment, that such judgment was pronounced by a Court of competent jurisdiction, unless the contrary appears on the record; but such presumption may be displaced by proving want of jurisdiction.
At present, Bangladesh has a reciprocal arrangement only with India.
Moreover, the foreign judgment will not be enforceable if it falls within any of the grounds for refusal provided in Section 13 of the CPC. Section 13 states the grounds for refusing to enforce the judgment passed by a foreign court.
a) where it has not been pronounced by a Court of competent jurisdiction;
(b) where it has not been given on the merits of the case;
(c) where it appears on the face of the proceedings to be founded on an incorrect view of international law or a refusal to recognise the law of Bangladesh in cases in which such law is applicable;
(d) where the proceedings in which the judgment was obtained are opposed to natural justice;
(e) where it has been obtained by fraud;
(f) where it sustains a claim founded on a breach of any law in force in Bangladesh
If there is any conflict between foreign judgments or international treaties with the Bangladeshi law, the Bangladeshi law will prevail.
It is pertinent to state that Bangladesh is a dualist state and thus a treaty or international convention only takes effect when it is incorporated into the domestic laws of Bangladesh.