Anerkennung und Vollstreckung ausländischer Urteile und Schiedssprüche in der Russischen Föderation

Abstract

In 2002, the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgements in Russia has been given a new legal basis: Both the new Arbitral Procedural Code and the Civil Procedural Code dedicate a separate chapter to this subject matter. However, the principles of recognition and enforcement have not changed much since the communist era. Moreover, the regulation currently in force basically corresponds with that of the Russian Code of Civil Procedure of 1864, which was the first introduction of international civil procedure in Russia. In spite of all discussions, the enforcement of foreign judgments continues to require an applicable international treaty, only in regard to the recognition of foreign judgements there are a few exceptions. On the other hand, the number of according biand multilateral treaties has constantly increased, covering primarily the CIS and the former Eastern Bloc. Whereas most of these bilateral legal aid treaties follow traditional patterns, two bilateral treaties within the CIS offer a more modern enforcement mechanism without the need for an exequatur. This aspect might be especially interesting from a European point of view. In spite of these reforms, it is still much easier to enforce arbitral awards than foreign judgements, since Russia has recently implemented the according UNCITRAL model law. The present study covers all these aspects, including some references to the execution of enforced foreign judgements and to the constitution of the courts, along with a synopsis of the regarding legislation and a compilation of corresponding law cases.