Title: Mercantile Insurance Co.

(MIC) vs Sara Yi
GR 234501

Facts:

Yi was involved in an accident in FAM MART located at El Cajon, California to which her little finer was
severed. FAM MART notified MIC, which MIC issued a memorandum acknowledging a valid policy between
FAM MART and MIC. Yi filed a personal injury action in Superior Court of California, to which the latter
ruled in her favor. Yi, together with Chuns (operators), filed an action for breach of insurance contract against
MIC. Because MIC defaulted the court issued a judgment in favor of Yi. Notice of renewal of judgment was
issued by the court to yi for enforcement of the contract. Since she was not able to enforce it in California, she
filed an action for enforcement in RTC. MIC in answer denied liability, averring that it has no privity of
contract between FAM MART and Yi. RTC dismissed the case while CA reverse RTC’s decision.

Issue: WON Yi may enforce the judgment of SCOC in the Philippines, against MIC?

Held:

Generally no, in the absence of a Special Contract. However, it is enforced as a matter of international
comity. In an action to enforce a foreign judgment, the matter left for proof is the foreign judgment
itself, and not the facts from which it prescinds. matters of remedy and procedure such as those relating
to the service of process upon a defendant are governed by the lex fori or the internal law of the
forum,which is the State of California in this case. This Court is well aware that foreign laws are not a
matter of judicial notice. Like any other fact, they must be alleged and proven. . An exception is in the
cases of Willamette Iron & Steel Works v. Muzzal, and Manufacturers Hanover Trust Co. v. Guerrero,
wherein we emphatically ruled that the testimony under oath of an attorney-at-law of a foreign state, who
quoted verbatim the applicable law and who stated that the same was in force at the time the obligations
were contracted, was sufficient evidence to establish the existence of said law.

The main consideration in an action for enforcement of a foreign judgment is to put such judgment into
force. Verily, direct involvement or being the subject of the foreign judgment is sufficient to clothe a
party with the requisite interest to institute an action before our courts for the recognition of the foreign
judgment.