MEXICO Law and Practice Contributed by: Adrián Magallanes, Diego Sierra and Rodrigo Barradas Muñiz, Von Wobeser y Sierra, SC
9.4 Enforcement Mechanisms of a Domestic Judgment The mechanism to enforce a judgment depends on the nature of the decision. An order that refers to a monetary payment to the prevailing party can be enforced through the seizure of assets. That seizure can be made through attachment proceedings or through a new summary action, which is a separate trial and can be filed before a different court (Articles 400, 407 and 421 of the Federal Code of Civil Procedure). If the decision involves an order against the losing party to do something that only they are capable of doing, such as executing a contract, the judge can sign the contract in lieu of the party if that party refuses to comply with the order (Article 421 of the Federal Code of Civil Procedure). Finally, if the losing party is obliged to perform an obligation that someone else can do and they refuse to comply with the order, a third party can be designated to perform the obligation at the expense of the losing party (Article 421 of the Federal Code of Civil Procedure). 9.5 Enforcement of a Judgment From a Foreign Country Foreign judgments are recognised and enforced in Mexico (Article 569 of the Federal Code of Civil Procedure). Mexico is a party to the Inter- American Convention on Extraterritorial Validity of Foreign Judgments and Arbitral Awards, and accordingly foreign judgments are enforced, provided that: • they comply with all the formal requirements necessary for them to be deemed authentic in the state of origin; • the judgments are duly translated into Span- ish;
• they are duly legalised; • the judge or tribunal rendering the judgment is competent in the international sphere to try the matter; • the plaintiff has been summoned or subpoe- naed in due legal form; • the parties had an opportunity to present their case; • the judgments are final or are considered res judicata; and • they are not contrary to the principles and laws of Mexican public policy. Mexico is also a party to the Hague Conven- tion on Choice of Court Agreements, which, if applicable, facilitates the enforcement of foreign judgments in a significant manner. 10. Appeal 10.1 Levels of Appeal or Review to a Litigation Under Mexican law, commercial oral judgments cannot be appealed. In other specific cases (for example, summary proceedings), there might be only one level of appeal, unless the value of the claim is below a certain threshold. Appeals against an order issued by a district court go to a collegiate court of appeal, and appeals against an order issued by a local first instance judge go to a collegiate court. If it is not possible under the applicable law to file an appeal, or even after the appeal has been resolved, the parties can file a constitutional pro- tection action (amparo), alleging violations of the Mexican Constitution.
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