AB391: Bill Text

LRB-2341/1

PJH:jld:rs

2011 - 2012 LEGISLATURE

2011 Assembly BILL 391

November 23, 2011 - Introduced by Representative D. Cullen, cosponsored by Senator Risser. Referred to Committee on Judiciary and Ethics.

AB391,1,5 An Act to create subchapter I (title) of chapter 806 [precedes 806.01], subchapter II (title) of chapter 806 [precedes 806.30], subchapter III (title) of chapter 806 [precedes 806.50], 806.50, 806.51, 806.52, 806.53, 806.54, 806.55, 806.56, 806.57 and 806.58 of the statutes; relating to: creating the Uniform Foreign Country Money Judgments Recognition Act.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill adopts the 2005 Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act adopted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. The bill requires the courts of this state to recognize a judgment of a court outside of the United States that grants or denies the recovery of a sum of money. Under the bill, to receive recognition by this state's courts, the foreign country's judgment must be final, conclusive, and enforceable. The bill excludes foreign country money judgments that are for taxes, for forfeitures or fines, or for support, maintenance, or a property division in connection with a domestic relations case.

Under the bill, this state's circuit courts are prohibited from recognizing a foreign country money judgment that was rendered by a judicial system that does not provide procedures compatible with the due process of law or that did not have jurisdiction over the defendant or the subject matter. The bill prohibits a circuit court from refusing to recognize the judgment for lack of personal jurisdiction for a number of reasons, including if the defendant was personally served with process in the foreign country, the defendant voluntarily appeared in the foreign court, the defendant had agreed to submit to the jurisdiction of the foreign court, the defendant was domiciled in the country where the foreign judgment was rendered, or the defendant was a business that was organized under the laws of, or had its principal place of business in, that foreign country.

The bill allows the circuit courts to refuse to recognize a foreign country money judgment for a number of reasons, including if the defendant did not receive sufficient timely notice of the proceedings, if the judgment was obtained by fraud, if the claim for relief that resulted in the judgment is repugnant to the public policy of this state, if the judgment conflicts with another final and conclusive judgment, or if the circumstances of the rendering of the judgment raise substantial doubt about the integrity of the foreign court that rendered the judgment.

The bill requires the circuit court, if it determines that the foreign country money judgment deserves recognition, to give the judgment full faith and credit in this state, and to enforce that judgment in the same manner as a judgment rendered by a court in this state.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB391, s. 1 Section 1. Subchapter I (title) of chapter 806 [precedes 806.01] of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,2,3 Chapter 806

AB391,2,5 subchapter I Judgment; general

AB391, s. 2 Section 2. Subchapter II (title) of chapter 806 [precedes 806.30] of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,2,8 Chapter 806

AB391,2,11 Subchapter ii judgment; Uniform foreign money claims

AB391, s. 3 Section 3. Subchapter III (title) of chapter 806 [precedes 806.50] of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,3,1 Chapter 806

AB391,3,4 Subchapter III judgment; Uniform foreign country money judgments recognition

AB391, s. 4 Section 4. 806.50 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,3,6 806.50 Definitions. (1) In this subchapter:

AB391,3,7 (a) "Foreign country" means a government other than one of the following:

AB391,3,8 1. The U.S. government.

AB391,3,10 2. The government of a state, district, commonwealth, territory, or insular possession of the United States.

AB391,3,13 3. Any other government with regard to which the decision in this state as to whether to recognize the judgment of that government's courts is initially subject to a determination under article IV, section 1, of the U.S. Constitution.

AB391,3,15 (b) "Foreign country judgment" means a judgment of a court of a foreign country.

AB391, s. 5 Section 5. 806.51 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,3,19 806.51 Application. (1) Except as provided in sub. (2), this subchapter applies to a foreign country judgment to the extent that the foreign country judgment meets all of the following criteria:

AB391,3,20 (a) Grants or denies recovery of a sum of money.

AB391,3,22 (b) Under the law of the foreign country where the foreign country judgment is rendered, is final, conclusive, and enforceable.

AB391,3,25 (2) This subchapter does not apply to a foreign country judgment, even if the foreign country judgment grants or denies recovery of a sum of money, to the extent that the foreign country judgment is one of the following:

AB391,4,1 (a) A judgment for taxes.

AB391,4,2 (b) A judgment of a forfeiture, fine, or other penalty.

AB391,4,4 (c) A judgment for support, maintenance, property division, or other judgment rendered in connection with domestic relations.

AB391, s. 6 Section 6. 806.52 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,4,8 806.52 Standards for recognition of a foreign country judgment. (1) Except as provided in subs. (2) and (3), a circuit court shall recognize a foreign country judgment.

AB391,4,10 (2) A circuit court may not recognize a foreign country judgment if any of the following applies:

AB391,4,13 (a) The foreign country judgment was rendered under a judicial system that does not provide impartial tribunals or procedures compatible with the requirements of due process of law.

AB391,4,15 (b) The foreign court that rendered the foreign country judgment did not have personal jurisdiction over the defendant in the proceeding.

AB391,4,17 (c) The foreign court that rendered the foreign country judgment did not have jurisdiction over the subject matter.

AB391,4,19 (3) A circuit court need not recognize a foreign country judgment if any of the following applies:

AB391,4,22 (a) The defendant in the proceeding in the foreign court that rendered the foreign country judgment did not receive notice of the proceeding in sufficient time to enable the defendant to defend.

AB391,4,24 (b) The foreign country judgment was obtained by fraud that deprived the losing party of an adequate opportunity to present its case.

AB391,5,3 (c) The foreign country judgment or the claim for relief on which the foreign country judgment is based is repugnant to the public policy of this state or of the United States.

AB391,5,5 (d) The foreign country judgment conflicts with another final and conclusive judgment.

AB391,5,8 (e) The proceeding in the foreign court that rendered the foreign country judgment was contrary to an agreement between the parties under which the dispute in question was to be determined otherwise than by proceedings in that foreign court.

AB391,5,11 (f) In the case of jurisdiction based only on personal service, the foreign court that rendered the foreign country judgment was a seriously inconvenient forum for the trial of the action.

AB391,5,14 (g) The foreign country judgment was rendered in circumstances that raise substantial doubt about the integrity of the foreign court that rendered the foreign country judgment with respect to the foreign country judgment.

AB391,5,16 (h) The specific proceeding in the foreign court leading to the foreign country judgment was not compatible with the requirements of due process of law.

AB391,5,19 (4) The party resisting recognition of the foreign country judgment has the burden of establishing that one of the grounds for nonrecognition of that foreign country judgment under sub. (2) or (3) exist.

AB391, s. 7 Section 7. 806.53 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,5,23 806.53 Personal jurisdiction. (1) A circuit court may not refuse to recognize a foreign country judgment for lack of personal jurisdiction if the defendant meets any of the following conditions:

AB391,5,25 (a) The defendant was served with process personally in the foreign country in the proceeding that resulted in the foreign country judgment.

AB391,6,4 (b) The defendant voluntarily appeared in the proceeding that resulted in the foreign country judgment, other than for the purpose of protecting property seized or threatened with seizure in the proceeding or of contesting the jurisdiction of the court over the defendant.

AB391,6,7 (c) Before the commencement of the proceeding that resulted in the foreign country judgment, the defendant had agreed to submit to the jurisdiction of the foreign court with respect to the subject matter involved in that proceeding.

AB391,6,9 (d) The defendant was domiciled in the foreign country when the proceeding that resulted in the foreign country judgment was instituted.

AB391,6,12 (e) The defendant was a corporation or other form of business organization that had its principal place of business in, or was organized under the laws of, the foreign country.

AB391,6,15 (f) The defendant had a business office in the foreign country and the proceeding in the court in that foreign country involved a claim for relief arising out of business done by the defendant through that office in the foreign country.

AB391,6,18 (g) The defendant operated a motor vehicle, as defined in s. 192.327 (1) (b), or an airplane in the foreign country and the proceeding that resulted in the foreign country judgment involved a claim for relief arising out of that operation.

AB391,6,21 (2) In addition to the list under sub. (1), a circuit court may recognize other bases for personal jurisdiction as sufficient to support the recognition of a foreign country judgment.

AB391, s. 8 Section 8. 806.54 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,7,2 806.54 Procedure for recognition of a foreign country judgment. (1) If recognition of a foreign country judgment is sought as an original matter, the issue of recognition shall be raised by filing an action in circuit court seeking recognition of the foreign country judgment.

AB391,7,5 (2) If recognition of a foreign country judgment is sought in a pending action, the issue of recognition may be raised by counterclaim, cross-claim, or as an affirmative defense.

AB391,7,7 (3) The party seeking recognition of a foreign country judgment has the burden of proving that this subsection applies to the foreign country judgement.

AB391, s. 9 Section 9. 806.55 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,7,12 806.55 Effect of recognition of a foreign country judgment. If a circuit court in a proceeding under s. 806.54 finds that the foreign country judgment is entitled to recognition, then, to the extent that the foreign country judgment grants or denies recovery of a sum of money, all of the following apply:

AB391,7,15 (1) The foreign country judgment is conclusive between the parties to the same extent as the judgment of another state entitled to full faith and credit in this state would be conclusive.

AB391,7,17 (2) The foreign country judgment is enforceable in the same manner and to the same extent as a judgment rendered in this state.

AB391, s. 10 Section 10. 806.56 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,7,24 806.56 Stay of proceedings pending appeal of a foreign country judgment. If a party establishes that an appeal from a foreign country judgment is pending or will be taken in that foreign country, the circuit court may stay any proceedings with regard to the foreign country judgment until the appeal is concluded, the time for appeal is expired, or the party appealing has had sufficient time to prosecute the appeal and has failed to do so.

AB391, s. 11 Section 11. 806.57 of the statutes is created to read:

AB391,8,5 806.57 Statute of limitations. An action to recognize a foreign country judgment shall be commenced within the earlier of the time during which the foreign country judgment is effective in the foreign country where the foreign country judgment was rendered, or 15 years after the date that the foreign country judgment became effective in that foreign country, or be barred.

AB391, s. 12 Section 12. 806.58 of the statutes is created to read: