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Court of Appeal Sets Limits for Foreign Judgments
13 December 2012
The Singapore Court of Appeal has laid down requirements a foreign judgment must meet before the Court will enforce it in Singapore. The Court also clarified the time limits which foreign judgments are subject to.
The Court, in ruling on Poh Soon Kiat v. Desert Palace, established that an enforceable foreign judgment must order the defendant to pay the claimant a definite and ascertained sum of money, write Chandra Mohan Rethnam and Chou Tzu, partners at Rajah & Tann in Singapore. Also, they note, the judgment cannot order the defendant to do anything else, such as specific performance.
“A foreign judgment which satisfies these requirements is enforceable in Singapore unless it is procured by fraud, contrary to public policy or contrary to natural justice,” the lawyers wrote in a Client Update.
Additionally, the Court ruled that an action to enforce a foreign judgment is subject to Section 6(1)(a) of the Limitation Act, rather than Section 6(3), which was held to apply only to local judgments, and therefore must be brought within six years from the date on which the foreign judgment ought to have been satisfied.
“Parties seeking to enforce foreign judgments in Singapore should ensure that the judgment in question is a money judgment,” the lawyers wrote. “The Courts will look into the nature of the order and refuse to enforce it if it is not a money judgment. Furthermore, parties should always take note of the applicable limitation period. This case clarifies that actions on foreign judgments should be brought within six years, which should alleviate any uncertainty for future litigants on this matter.”
