RECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENT OF  Foreign judgement are given conclusiveness
FOREIGN JUDGEMENT in our jurisdiction as if they were rendered by
1. GEERALLY
 Enforcement and recognition of a foreign
judgement involves the extra-territorial
application of a foreign law.
 The Ph has not entered into a treaty for the
Enforcement and Recognition of foreign
judgement which could serve as basis for our
court to Enforce and Recognize such
judgement.
 Section 48, Rule 39 however recogniz4 E and
R of foreign judgement
 What then is our basis for the E and R?
COMITY
Section 48. Effect of foreign judgments or final
orders. — The effect of a judgment or final order of
a tribunal of a foreign country, having jurisdiction to
render the judgment or final order is as follows:
(a) In case of a judgment or final order upon
a specific thing, the judgment or final order,
is conclusive upon the title to the thing, and
(b) In case of a judgment or final order
against a person, the judgment or final order
is presumptive evidence of a right as
between the parties and their successors in
interest by a subsequent title.
In either case, the judgment or final order may be
repelled by evidence of a want of jurisdiction, want
of notice to the party, collusion, fraud, or clear
mistake of law or fact
RES JUDICATA effect of Foreign Judgement
our courts.
 Generally, a foreign judgement is entitled to
respect and recognition by our courts as long
as they do not violate our public policy or
prohibitive laws.
 We will not relitigate the issues decided by the
foreign judgement (except in the instances
mentioned in section 48, Rule 39)
2. REASONS FOR RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN
JUDGEMENT
1. What is COMITY?
 It is not a matter of absolute right on the part
of the prevailing party to require our courts to
enforce a foreign judgement.
 We are not obligated to do so
 Even so, when comity conflicts with our laws,
public morals, our courts will refuse to
recognize them
2. What is RECIPROCITY?
 If a foreign court accords recognition to Ph
judgement, our courts will similarly extend
recognition or grant effect to the foreign
judgement.
 The Ph have not entered into a treaty on the
reciprocity of foreign judgement
3. VESTED RIGHT
 A fixed, absolute, complete, and
unconditional RIGHT vested by a foreign
judgement.
4. RES JUDICATA
 Is the rule that a final judgement on the merits
by a court of competent jurisdiction in
CONCLUSIVE of the rights of the parties or
their privies in all later suits on points and
JESBRUSARAM
 matters determined in the former suit filed in
a foreign judgement.
 Foreign judgement constitutes res judicata
and the issues raised in the foreign judgement
should not be re-litigated anew in another
country.
3. THEORIES ON RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN
JUDGEMENT
a. That the Cause of Action (COA) and the
judgement are merged – no need to re-
litigate the forum
b. That the CAUSE OF Action (COA) and the
judgement is not merged – the case has to
be re-litigated all over again.
4. RECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENT OF
FOREIGN JUDGEMENT DISTINGUISHED.
 An action to ENFORCE the relief granted is an
active remedy.
o It is the implementation of the
foreign judgement because it seeks
the rendition of another judgement
from the local court, rendering the
foreign judgement as a local
judgement.
 RECIGNITION is passive as it is raised as a
defense to defeat another action filed in
another country (res judicata as a defense)
 ENFORCEMENT includes RECOGNITION;
RECOGNITION does not necessarily include
ENFORCEMENT.
 A foreign judgement may only be recognized
and enforced in the Ph when the LOSING
party is in the Ph or has property in the Ph,
against which a foreign judgement may be
executed.
5. RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN JUDGEMENT; RES
JUDICATA AS A BAR
 Where a party in a foreign judgement files
another action in our country against the
other party therein, and the latter resist such
action by claiming that the foreign judgement
is a bar to such action, he is raising the
defense of res judicata.
Res Judicata rests on 2 grounds:
1. Public policy and necessity – there must be
an end to litigation
2. An individual should not be vexed twice for
the same cause.
6. …
7. …
8. EFFECTS IF FOREIGN JUDGEMENT,
GENERALLY
Section 48. Effect of foreign judgments or final
orders. — The effect of a judgment or final order of
a tribunal of a foreign country, having jurisdiction to
render the judgment or final order is as follows:
(a) In case of a judgment or final order upon
a specific thing, the judgment or final order,
is conclusive upon the title to the thing, and
*** the judgement on a specific thing is beyond
the reach of another. ..
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  The judgement over a specific thing is an
action in REM (binding to the whole world)
o If it is beyond the reach of another
court
o Our courts will not disturb the
judgement.
 The judgement over a person is in personam
– the person against wohom it is rendered
may overcome the presumption of liability (on
the grounds mentioned in section 48, Rule 39)
9. REQUIREMENT FOR GIVING EFFECT TO
FOREIGN JUDGEMENT
1. The judgement or final order is rendered by
a tribunal of a foreign country.
2. The court or tribunal has jurisdiction to
render the judgement
3. The judgement must not be against the local
law, good morals, or public policy of the
forum.
SUMMARY
 Must be a judgement or final order
o What is final judgement?
o On the merits – which of the party is
right, as compared to a technicality
o Interlocutory order
 The foreign court must have jurisdiction
 Due process requirement complied –
o Procedural
o Substantive due process
o The cold mentality of a judge
 Judgement must not be contrary to our laws,
public policy or good custom,
10. GROUNDS TO REPEL FOREIGN JUDGEMENT
Section 48, Rule 39
Xxx
In either case, the judgment or final order may be
repelled by evidence of a want of jurisdiction, want
of notice to the party, collusion, fraud, or clear
mistake of law or fact.
WHOSE LAW SHALL APPLY IN DETERMINING THAT
THE FOREIGN JUDGEMENT IS NOT VALID FOR; want
of jurisdiction, want of notice to the party, collusion,
or clear mistakes of law or fact?
17. FOREIGN JUDGEMENT TO CONFORM TO
CONSTITUTIONAL REQUIREMENT.
Section 14,Article VIII. No decision shall be rendered
by any court without expressing therein clearly and
distinctly the facts and the law on which it is based
No petition for review or motion for reconsideration
of a decision of the courts shall be refused due
course or denied without stating the legal basis
thereof.
 What is a Memorandum Decision
- A court’s decision that gives the ruling
(what it decides and orders done), but no
opinion (reason for the decision)
 What are the requirement for it to be held
valid?
The distinctive features of the memorandum
decision are:
First, it is rendered by an appellant court, and
Second, in incorporates by reference the
findings of fact or the conclusions of law
contained in the decision , order or ruling
under review.
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WHAT IS A MEMORANDUM DECISION

 The MD, to be valid, cannot incorporate the

findings of fact and the conclusions of law of
the lower court only by remote reference,
which is to say that the challenged decision is
not easily and immediately available to the
person reading the memorandum decision.
For the incorporation by reference to be
allowed, it must provide for direct access to
the facts and the law being adopted, which
must be contained in a statement attached to
the said decision. In other words, the
memorandum decision authorized under
Section of BP blg. 129 should actually embody
the findings of fact and conclusions of law of
the lower court in annex attached to and
made an indispensable part of the decision.

JESBRUSARAM