ASIAVEST LIMITED vs CA

GR No. 128803 September 25, 1998

FACTS:

Plaintiff Asiavest Limited filed a complaint against the defendant

Antonio Heras praying that said defendant be ordered to pay to the
plaintiff the amounts awarded by the Hong Kong Court Judgment. The
defendant admits the existence of the judgment as well as its
amendment, but not necessarily the authenticity or validity thereof.

One of the defendant’s witness was Mr. Lousich, an expert on the laws
of Hong Kong, as a r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f t h e l a w o f f i c e o f t h e
defendant's counsel who made a verification of the record of
the case filed by the plaintiff in Hong Kong against the
d e f e n d a n t , a s w e l l a s t h e procedure in serving Court processes in Hong
Kong.

The trial court concluded that the Hong Kong court judgment
should be recognized and given effect in this jurisdiction for failure of
HERAS to overcome the legal presumption in favor of the foreign judgment.
The Court of Appeals rendered its decision reversing the decision of
the trial court and dismissing ASIAVEST's complaint without
prejudice. It underscored the fact that a foreign judgment does not of
itself have any extraterritorial application.

ISSUE:

Whether the HK Judgment is enforceable here in the Philippines.

DECISION:

Yes, the HK Judgment is enforceable in the Philippines but due

to invalid service of summons, the Judgment was invalidated. Under
paragraph (b) of Section 50, Rule 39 of the Rules of Court, a foreign
judgmenta g a i n s t a p e r s o n r e n d e r e d b y a c o u r t h a v i n g j u r i s
d i c t i o n t o p r o n o u n c e t h e j u d g m e n t i s presumptive evidence of a
right as between the parties and their successors in interest by thesubsequent
title. However, the judgment may be repelled by evidence of want of
jurisdiction, want of notice to the party, collusion, fraud, or clear
mistake of law or fact. Hence, once the authenticity of the foreign
judgment is proved, the burden to repel it on grounds provided for
in paragraph (b) of Section 50, Rule 39 of the Rules of Court is on the party
challenging the foreign judgment. H e r e , H e r a s a d m i t t e d t h e e x i s t e n c e
o f t h e H o n g K o n g j u d g m e n t . O n t h e o t h e r h a n d , ASIAVEST
presented evidence to prove rendition, existence, and authentication of the
judgment by the proper officials.