Hague Convention of 2019: Foreign Judgements in Civil and Commercial Matters

Mike Freer Excerpts

Tuesday 16th January 2024 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Mike Freer)]

My hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Lord Bellamy KC) has made the following statement:

On Friday 12 January, the UK signed the Hague Convention of 2019 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters (hereafter: “Hague 2019”; “the convention”). The signing of Hague 2019 follows from the UK Government’s decision, which was announced on 23 November 2023, to join the convention as soon as possible, following a public consultation.

Once in force, the convention will provide greater certainty and predictability for citizens and businesses dealing in cross-border civil and commercial disputes, about when judgments from courts in the UK will be recognised and enforced in the courts of other parties to the convention, and when judgments from those states can be recognised and enforced in the UK. By facilitating cross-border recognition and enforcement of judgments, the convention will provide a welcome uniform set of rules for a wide range of judgments between the UK and other contracting parties; increase confidence in the UK legal system; support international trade, investment and cross-border mobility; enhance access to justice and reduce the costs for litigants of determining whether a judgment obtained from one court is enforceable in another contracting state. And, by joining the convention the UK is indicating its position as a global leader in private international law—an area in which the UK undoubtedly has significant expertise.

For these reasons, the UK Government believe that joining the convention will be highly beneficial for the UK. Therefore, the UK Government have signed the convention as a signal of the UK’s commitment to co-operation with our international partners and will now work to ratify the convention. Ratification will occur once all the necessary implementing legislation and rules have been put in place to facilitate the convention’s smooth operation. As per the rules set out in the convention, Hague 2019 will come into force 12 months after the UK has deposited its instrument of ratification. As part of the procedural stages that precede any ratification, the treaty will be laid before Parliament for scrutiny in the coming months under the terms of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 (“CRaG”).

Concluded under the auspices of the Hague conference on private international law, the convention has a potentially global reach. There are currently 29 contracting parties (the 27 EU member states, the EU and Ukraine) to Hague 2019, for whom the convention entered into force on 1 September 2023. Uruguay has also ratified the convention, with it set to enter into force on 1 October 2024. There are also six signatories (Israel, Costa Rica, Montenegro, North Macedonia, the Russian Federation, the USA) who have not yet ratified.

The Hague 2019 convention was signed on behalf of the jurisdictions of Scotland, Northern Ireland, and England and Wales. While the decision to join an international convention is a reserved matter, the implementation of the convention is devolved to Scotland and Northern Ireland as it relates to private international law, a devolved matter. My officials have worked closely with colleagues in the devolved Governments and will continue to do so throughout the implementation process.

The UK is able to make declarations under the convention under articles 14, 16, 18, 19 and 25 at the point of signature, ratification, or any time thereafter to clarify or limit the application of the convention in the UK. Such declarations may be subsequently modified or withdrawn at any time.

The UK Government will keep questions of declarations under review as we proceed to signature and implementation and in the future as the convention comes into force between the UK and the current and future contracting parties.

A copy of the UK Government response to the Hague 2019 consultation was placed in the Libraries of both Houses at the time of publication and is also available online.<sup>1

1</sup> https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/hague-convention-of-2-july-2019-on-the-recognition-and-enforcement-of-foreign-judgments-in-civil-or-commercial-matters-hague-2019.

[HCWS184]