Foreign decrees passed in UAE can now be enforced in India after reciprocal agreement between the two nations

The Central Government has issued a notification declaring United Arab Emirates (UAE) to be a reciprocating territory and that foreign civil decrees passed by Courts in the UAE can be effectuated in India in line with Section 44A of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (CPC).

Section 44A of Code of Civil Procedure 1908 speaks about “Execution of decrees passed by Courts in reciprocating territory”. Under section 44A of the CPC, a decree of any of the Superior Courts of any reciprocating territory is executable as a decree passed by the domestic (Indian) Court. Therefore in case the decree does not pertain to a reciprocating territory or a Superior Court of a reciprocating territory, as notified by the Central Government in the Official Gazette, the decree is not directly executable in India.

Now, after this notification has been passed, decrees passed by Courts in the UAE can now be executed in India, as if they were passed in Indian Civil Courts.

The Central Government has declared the following courts in the UAE to be superior Courts of that territory namely:

Federal Court-
(a) Federal Supreme Court;

(b) Federal, First Instance and Appeals Courts in the Emirates of Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah.

Local Courts
(a) Abu Dhabi Judicial Department;

(b) Dubai Courts;

(c) Ras Al Khaimah Judicial Department;

(d) Courts of Abu Dhabi Global Markets;

(e) Courts of Dubai International Financial Center.

According to legal experts, this step would deter citizens fleeing to India after committing financial fraud or civil offences in UAE. As there is an increase in the number of economic frauds and the cases where such fraudsters generally flee to western or other Middle-East countries after committing such economic frauds, this move by India will be more of a show of bilateral respect of each other’s legal system. Legal experts feel that the move by India will also pave the way for implementation of civil verdicts ordered by designated courts in the UAE, through Indian courts.