Enforcing foreign judgments, Law 30 of 1928

In briefA judgment issued by a court constituted outside Iraq is enforced by a decision of enforcement issued by an Iraqi Court of First Instance under the Law on the Enforcement of Foreign Court Judgments No. 30 of 1928. The claim is brought where the judgment debtor resides, or where the property to be attached is found if that person has no fixed residence in Iraq. The court examines the conditions in articles 6 and 7 of its own motion. Decisions in absentia may be objected to, may not be appealed, and may be taken to cassation. This path is not the recognition of a foreign arbitral award under Law 14 of 2021.

The Law Office of Ali Barakat in Baghdad explains the 1928 statute that governs a judgment coming from a court sitting outside Iraq. The King enacted the text with the approval of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. It was written in Baghdad on 26 June 1928, corresponding to 8 Muharram 1347. The card in the Iraqi Legislation Database records no Official Gazette issue number; that absence is stated as it stands, and no issue is invented. What follows marks the statutory limits on a decision of enforcement.

What the 1928 law covers — and what it does not

The statute’s own definitions are narrow. A “foreign judgment” is one issued by a court constituted outside Iraq. The “foreign court” is the court that issued it, and the “foreign country” is the country in which it was issued (article 1). Awards given by arbitrators fall outside that wording. Recognition of a foreign arbitral award that comes within the New York Convention is read under Law No. 14 of 2021 and the reservations recorded there, on the page Iraq’s reservations to the New York Convention.

Enforcement inside Iraq, when the 1928 law applies, is not an administrative stamp on a certified copy. Article 2 requires an Iraqi court to issue a “decision of enforcement.” The creditor brings a claim for that decision before the Court of First Instance (article 3(a)). Venue is the court of the place where the person against whom judgment was given resides. If that person has no fixed residence in Iraq, venue is the place where the property to be attached is found (article 3(b)). A certified copy of the foreign judgment, together with a statement of its reasons, must accompany the claim (article 3(c)).

The court then appoints a hearing date and summons the person against whom judgment was given, whether that person is inside Iraq or abroad, following the formal rules of service (article 4). Only after that hearing does the court grant a decision of enforcement or refuse the claim (article 5).

The conditions the court must itself examine

Article 6 does not leave the conditions to the parties’ pleadings. All of them must be present, and the court looks at them of its own motion:

service of the foreign proceedings must have been by reasonable and sufficient means;
the foreign court must have had competence in one of the senses listed in article 7;
the judgment must be for a debt or a specified sum of money — or, if it was given in a penal case, only the civil compensation in it can be sought;
the cause of action must not, under Iraqi law, be contrary to public order;
the judgment must already be enforceable in the country where it was given.

Article 7 treats the foreign court as competent if any one of these heads is established: the dispute concerned movable or immovable property situated in that country; it arose from a contract made there, or intended to be performed there in whole or in the part the judgment covers; it arose from acts that took place wholly or partly there; the person against whom judgment was given was ordinarily resident there, or was engaged in trade there, when the claim was filed; that person attended the proceedings voluntarily; or that person agreed to the foreign court’s jurisdiction. If none of those heads is met, the competence condition in article 6(b) fails.

Two limits in article 6 are easy to miss. A foreign penal sanction is not enforced under this statute; only civil compensation, if awarded in that judgment and if the other conditions are met, comes within the scope. Whether the cause of action offends public order is judged by Iraqi law, not by a label one party writes in the petition.

Article 8(a) requires the court to dismiss the claim if the person against whom judgment was given proves that the judgment was obtained by fraud, or that the foreign proceedings were conducted contrary to justice and fairness, or if the court itself finds that any of the article 6 conditions is missing. If that person shows a right to apply to a higher court abroad and has done so, or intends to do so in accordance with the formal requirements, the Iraqi court must adjourn until those proceedings end. It may, if necessary, order a precautionary attachment after taking security from the creditor, provided there is no objection of the kind described in article 8(a) (article 8(b)).

How a first-instance decision is challenged, and which foreign courts the law reaches

In-absentia decisions of the Court of First Instance under this statute follow the ordinary rules on objection. They may not, however, be appealed. Cassation before the Court of Cassation is the path that remains open (article 9). The 1928 wording names the Court of Cassation; today that court is the Federal Court of Cassation. Where the Civil Procedure Law’s general cassation period applies, it is read in that law. The bar on appeal in article 9 stays in place.

Article 11 ties territorial reach to reciprocity in a particular way. The law applies to judgments of foreign courts designated in special regulations issued from time to time, once Iraqi court judgments have themselves become enforceable in that country — whether under a special agreement with the Iraqi State, or under the laws in force there, and whether by a decision of enforcement or by other proceedings with the same result. States are those designated in the special regulations in force. That is established from the text in force when the claim is filed.

A decision of enforcement, once issued, is not itself the later path of compulsory collection. Collection proceeds before the Enforcement Officer under Enforcement Law No. 45 of 1980. Article 10 of the 1928 law provides that half the fees relating to civil claims are collected on claims brought under it. Article 12, in its original wording, charges the Minister of Justice (وزير العدلية) with implementing the law.

Legal basis and sources

Frequently asked questions

Where is the claim filed?

In the Court of First Instance of the place where the person against whom judgment was given resides, or, if that person has no fixed residence in Iraq, of the place where the property to be attached is found (article 3).

Must the person against whom judgment was given raise the article 6 conditions?

No. The court examines of its own motion whether all of them are present.

Can the first-instance decision be appealed?

Article 9 bars appeal against in-absentia decisions issued under this law. Objection remains available under its own rules, and cassation remains open.

Is every judgment of a foreign court enforced in Iraq?

Only if articles 6 and 7 are satisfied, no ground for dismissal under article 8 arises, and article 11 brings the foreign court within the law’s reach.

Does this statute apply to a foreign arbitral award?

No. It governs a judgment of a court constituted outside Iraq. A foreign award has its own path under the Convention after Law 14 of 2021, within the reservations.

Always check the text in force and its amendments in the official source.

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Enforcing a foreign court judgment under Law No. 30 of 1928