ENFORCING FOREIGN JUDGMENTS IN ARIZONA

In today’s global economy, businesses often have assets located in more than one jurisdiction. While a person may recover a judgment in one place, it may become necessary to pursue the judgment debtor to another jurisdiction to collect anything on the judgment. A party to a lawsuit may also want to take advantage of the preclusive effect of a foreign judgment in any subsequent lawsuit in Arizona. As a border state, Arizona has courts that are historically acquainted with the issues surrounding the recognition and enforcement of non-Arizona judgments.

Any judgment issued by a court outside the State of Arizona is a “foreign” judgment under Arizona law. Judgments issued in one of Arizona’s sister-states within the United States may be quickly domesticated in Arizona courts under the Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act. The out-of-state judgment will still need to be “exemplified” under federal law to be entitled to full faith and credit in Arizona. The holder of the judgment will also need to seek legal counsel to ensure that the out-of-state judgment was properly obtained in its state of issuance. Otherwise, an Arizona court may still refuse to recognize the judgment.

A judgment issued by a court in a foreign country does not have the benefit of the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Instead, an Arizona court’s recognition of a foreign country judgment will depend upon a number of factors, many of which rest with the court’s discretion. The requirements for authenticating a foreign country judgment, for use in evidence in an Arizona court, will vary depending upon the treaties in force between the United States and the judgment’s country of origin. The holder of a foreign country judgment will also need to ensure the status of the judgment under the law of the original country. Litigation over whether to enforce foreign country judgments can become quite complex, so a judgment holder should be well-prepared before filing an enforcement action.

Before any judgment is obtained, foreign legal proceedings may already become relevant within Arizona. Where an overseas lawsuit involves people, property, or businesses situated within Arizona, federal law allows the federal district court in Arizona to oversee ancillary discovery proceedings in support of that lawsuit. Under these discovery procedures, foreign parties can obtain evidence within Arizona for their out-of-state litigation, with greater freedom than most evidentiary treaties afford. While ancillary discovery proceedings give overseas litigants a powerful evidentiary tool, they require the expertise and assistance of local counsel in Arizona to yield real benefits. As Arizonans and their businesses continue to reach out to the rest of the world, proceedings connected to overseas lawsuits will only increase.

THIS DOCUMENT WAS PREPARED FOR GENERAL INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE