Skola, Thomas J.

English

University of Miami School of Law

University of Miami Law SchoolInstitutional RepositoryUniversity of Miami Inter-American Law Review10-1-1982Civil Judgment Recognition and the Integration ofMultiple-State Associations by Robert C. CasadThomas J. SkolaFollow this and additional works at: http://repository.law.miami.edu/umialrThis Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by Institutional Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in University of Miami Inter-American Law Review by an authorized administrator of Institutional Repository. For more information, please contact library@law.miami.edu.Recommended CitationThomas J. Skola, Civil Judgment Recognition and the Integration of Multiple-State Associations by Robert C. Casad, 14 U. Miami Inter-Am.L. Rev. 379 (1982)Available at: http://repository.law.miami.edu/umialr/vol14/iss2/9BOOK REVIEWCivil Judgment Recognition and theIntegration of Multiple-State AssociationsBy ROBERT C. CASADTHE REGENTS PRESS OF KANSAS, 1981Robert C. Casad, John H. and John M. Kane DistinguishedProfessor of Law at the University of Kansas, has written a well-organized and well-documented book on an important topic to theinternational lawyer: The Recognition and Enforcement of ForeignJudgments. Professor Casad's scholarly publication is especiallywelcome, inasmuch as both practicing lawyers and legal scholarshave tended to shy away from this particular subject. Practicingattorneys are infrequently called upon to work on a case in which aclient is either attempting to enforce, or defending against the en-forcement of, a foreign judgment. Such litigation involves two sep-arate lawsuits: the initial suit in the forum country, and the exe-quatur or recognition proceeding in the country whereenforcement is desired. Consequently, in most cases the time andexpense factors become prohibitive. In addition, enforcement offoreign judgments usually involves exotic legal devices or proceed-ings, such as letters rogatory, research on unfamiliar foreign law,and requires the involvement of two or more separate lawyers orlaw firms. Hence, clients generally opt for recognition and enforce-ment of foreign judgments only as a remedy of last resort, andpracticing lawyers become involved with the intricacies of enforc-ing foreign judgments only if the damages or emotions are suffi-ciently great to justify the extra effort, expense, and delay.Similarly, recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments isusually not treated in depth in law schools in the United States, orelsewhere for that matter, either because students and professorsare typically not sufficiently familiar with basic foreign law con-cepts or because the controlling rules are widely scattered or notreadily available for convenient review. For example, judgment-recognition provisions in Brazil are contained in the Civil Code,the Code of Civil Procedure, and the Internal Rules of the FederalLAWYER OF THE AMERICASSupreme Court. Consequently, most law schools gloss over thissubject in their courses dealing with conflict-of-laws.Professor Casad has organized his materials well and offers hisreaders a comprehensive treatment of a complex subject. This pub-lication will be an excellent resource for any lawyer or studentwishing to become familiar with the subject matter in general orlooking for an insight into the specific laws and procedures gov-erning the recognition and execution of foreign judgments in theCentral American countries, the United States, and the EuropeanCommon Market. The appendices, notes, and bibliography are am-ple and clear, and constitute excellent aids for further research andanalysis.Professor Casad's explanation of certain common law termsand concepts in the comparative context of their counterparts inthe civil law is particularly useful and enlightening. For example,in pages 44-47, he deals with such basic common law concepts as"jurisdiction", "venue", "competency", "res judicata" and "collat-eral estoppel", and warns his readers about the complex and differ-ent nature of such concepts in the civil law and their relevancy tothe recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments in civil lawjurisdictions.Chapter 3 ("Execution of Foreign Judgments under the Busta-mante Code") is a concise treatment of the history surrounding theBustamante Code and a cogent analysis of its provisions that applyto the recognition and execution of foreign judgments. This is anecessary chapter, at least in theory, because all of the CentralAmerican countries ultimately ratified the Bustamante Code. I alsofound Professor Casad's review of the law and practice of each ofthe individual Central American countries to be clear and informa-tive, with abundant references to local court decisions and com-mentary. The benefits to any lawyer or student who wishes to be-come familiar with the specific laws and procedures for treatmentof foreign judgments in any of the Central American countries areinvaluable.Professor Casad's use of comparative analysis is a positive fea-ture and makes his publication more interesting and entertainingto his readers. The author both explains the various similaritiesand differences among the applicable laws and practices in theCentral American countries, the United States, and the EuropeanCommon Market, and examines a typical case in each of these sys-tems. By using such comparative analysis, Professor Casad is able[Vol. 14:2BOOK REVIEWto depict the relative effectiveness of the three systems in a moresummary fashion and thus emphasize the more significant similari-ties and differences among the three systems.Although Chapter 11 of the publication treats the Inter-Amer-ican Convention on Extra-Territorial Validity of Foreign Judg-ments and Arbitral Awards, Professor Casad has not included aseparate chapter on the recognition and enforcement of arbitralawards. This is unfortunate, for arbitral awards are increasinglybecoming more popular as a means of resolving disputes in a com-mercial context and are governed by special treaties (e.g., the In-ter-American Convention on International Commercial Arbitrationof 1975, the United Nations Convention of 1958). The problemsand procedures relating to the recognition and enforcement of ar-bitral awards are similar to those dealt with in this book, and themechanisms governing commercial arbitration in an internationaland comparative setting are being constantly reviewed and modi-fied. Since Honduras, Costa Rica, and Panama, as well as theUnited States, have apparently ratified the Inter-American Con-vention on International Commercial Arbitration of 1975, sometreatment of this Convention and the United Nations Conventionof 1958 would have been appropriate.Professor Casad has made a positive contribution to our legalliterature through his Civil Judgment Recognition and the Inte-gration of Multiple-State Associations. This book should be a use-ful research tool for the legal scholar and a valuable reference toolfor the practicing lawyer called upon to assist his or her client in amatter involving the recognition and enforcement of a foreignjudgment in any of the Central American countries, the UnitedStates, or the European Common Market.THOMAS J. SKOLA** In private practice in Miami, Florida. Admitted to the Bars in New York, Florida,and the Federative Republic of Brazil.1982]

\u3cem\u3eCivil Judgment Recognition and the Integration of Multiple-State Associations\u3c/em\u3e by Robert C. Casad

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\u3cem\u3eCivil Judgment Recognition and the Integration of Multiple-State Associations\u3c/em\u3e by Robert C. Casad

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