CROSS-BORDER ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENTS IN CIVIL MATTERS IN EU COUNTRIES

Abstract

This research article is dedicated to identifying the features of the legal mechanism for the cross-border enforcement of court judgments in civil cases within European Union countries. It has been established that there are several legal regimes for the recognition and enforcement of court judgments in civil matters within EU countries, depending on the country of origin of the judgment: ranging from the simplified procedure provided for by Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (recast), applicable in relations between EU Member States, to the ordinary procedure applicable in relations between EU countries and third countries. It is emphasized that, pursuant to the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of 12 December 2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (recast), a judgment given in a Member State is recognized in other Member States without the need for any special procedure. Likewise, a judgment given in a Member State that is enforceable in that Member State is enforceable in other Member States without the need for a declaration of enforceability. A judgment delivered by a court of an EU Member State is recognized and enforced in another Member State, even if it is rendered against a person not domiciled in a Member State. It is maintained that the mutual recognition and enforcement of court judgments in civil matters between Ukraine and EU countries (with the exception of Denmark) currently takes place on the basis of the 2019 Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters, which provides for the standard procedure for such recognition and enforcement through the issuance of an exequatur. It is concluded that one of the positive consequences of Ukraine’s accession to the EU will be the extension to the country of the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of 12 December 2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (recast), which will significantly simplify the process of recognizing and enforcing Ukrainian civil court judgments within the EU and vice versa.