Foreign Civil Decrees Passed by U.A.E. Courts Are Now Enforceable in India The Indian Government has advised in a recent notification that foreign civil decrees which are passed by the courts in the UAE are allowed to now be executed in India.
For this purpose, the Central Government has given a notification that it accepts UAE as a reciprocating territory for enforcing any foreign civil decrees in India, in tandem with Section 44A of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC).
“In exercise of the powers conferred by Explanation 1 to section 44A of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), the Central Government hereby declares, United Arab Emirates to be a reciprocating territory for the purposes of the said section.”
Government Notification released on January 17, 2020
This implies that decrees which are passed by any courts in the UAE will now allowed to be executed in India, similarly in case if they were passed by any Indian civil courts.
The manner for bestowing such a status to any foreign civil decrees has been described in the Section 44A of the CPC, and it states,
“Execution of decrees passed by Courts in reciprocating territory. (1) Where a certified copy of decree of any of the superior Courts of any reciprocating territory has been filed in a District Court, the decree may be executed in India as if it had been passed by the District Court….”
The specification further stipulates the mode in which the foreign decree must be filed. In any cases where such a special recognition of foreign decrees is conferred only on the decrees which are passed by courts located in reciprocating territories, which had to be so announced by the Government Notification. Regarding this, the initial explanation to Section 44A, CPC, mentions,
“Reciprocating territory’ means any country or territory outside India which the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare to be a reciprocating territory for the purposes of this section; and “superior Courts”, with reference to any such territory, means such Courts as may be specified in the said notification.”
Therefore, the Central Government has advised that the civil decrees passed by any of the following UAE courts may be now executed in India, that is,
Federal Court
Federal Supreme Court;
Abu Dhabi Judicial Department;
All Dubai Courts;
Ras Al Khaimah Judicial Department;
Courts of Abu Dhabi Global Markets;
Courts of Dubai International Financial Center.
Federal, First Instance and Appeals Courts located in the Ajman, Emirates of Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah;
