QATAR Law and Practice Contributed by: Hani Al Naddaf and Maysa Sleiman, Al Tamimi & Company
3.4 Process of Enforcing Foreign Judgments The new regime centralises all enforcement work before a specialised Enforcement Court and replaces the enforcement provisions previously found in the Civil and Commercial Procedure Law. The procedure applies to money and non-money judgments rendered outside Qatar, whether the originating country is party to a treaty with Qatar or not; treaty provisions simply mitigate the reciprocity analysis. Before filing, it is recommended (though not manda - tory) to confirm that the judgment is final, conclusive and no longer appealable in the issuing state, and to verify that none of the grounds for refusal under Arti - cle 13 of the JEL are present, such as lack of proper jurisdiction of the foreign court, inadequate service or representation, absence of reciprocity, conflict with a prior Qatari judgment, or conflict with Qatari public policy or morals. If the issuing state is a GCC or Riyadh Convention member, those treaties evidence reciprocity but do not displace the procedural steps. The applicant should: • obtain an original or certified copy of the foreign judgment bearing the court seal; • legalise or apostille the judgment through the usual diplomatic channel culminating in authentication by the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs; • prepare a certified Arabic translation of the judg - ment and all accompanying documents; • secure a certified statement from the issuing court (or its clerk) setting out the steps required to execute the judgment in the issuing state (Article 15); and • if a legal representative will file the application, exe - cute a power of attorney in their favour and legalise and translate it. The enforcement application is filed with the Enforce - ment Court by completing the designated electronic form prescribed by Article 28 and submitting it via the Enforcement Court’s e-portal or at the Court registry, including mandatory data such as: • the type, date and issuing entity of the judgment; • the exact obligation (sum payable or act required);
• full particulars and national addresses of both the enforcement applicant and the judgment debtor; and • supporting attachments (legalised judgment, trans - lations, statement of foreign enforcement steps, power of attorney, and evidence of reciprocity, if relevant). The filing fee must be paid, after which the applica - tion is registered and assigned an enforcement file number. A single enforcement judge reviews the file without a hearing (Article 35), confirming that the fol - lowing Article 13 conditions are met: • jurisdiction of the foreign court; • proper service and representation; • finality; • no conflict with an existing Qatari judgment; • no violation of public order or morals; and • reciprocity (unless a treaty renders this automatic). If any condition is missing, the judge refuses enforce - ment by order, and the applicant may appeal to the Enforcement Court’s appellate chamber within ten working days (Article 38). If the judge is satisfied regarding admissibility, the judgment is treated as an “enforceable title” and the Court serves it on the judgment debtor at the national address recorded in Qatar’s address system (Article 31). The notice gives the debtor ten working days to perform voluntarily or prove compliance, and warns that the debtor’s assets are frozen as of the notice date and that concealment or disposal constitutes a criminal offence (Article 105). Before or immediately after service, the judge may do the following, on their own initiative or upon request: • attach and seize movable or immovable property; • order garnishment of bank accounts or receivables; • ban the debtor from travel; • suspend governmental services or business deal - ings; or • order arrest or imprisonment (subject to Articles 42–44). These measures are discretionary and aim to secure assets pending final enforcement (Article 36). Within ten working days of service, the debtor may file writ -
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