NO LIMITATION PERIOD FOR SEEKING EXEQUATUR OF A FOREIGN JUDGMENT IN FRANCE
On 11 January 2023, in a case in which the Lugano Convention on jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters of 16 September 1988 applied, the French Cour de cassation clarified the various limitation periods governing the enforcement of foreign judgments in France.
On 14 November 2002, the Debt Enforcement Office of Lausanne District delivered a certificate of shortage of assets in favour of an unpaid creditor. On 23 November 2017, the creditor sought leave to enforce the certificate in France. The debtor argued that the action seeking leave to enforce the certificate was time-barred.
The Aix-en-Provence Court of Appeal held that, pursuant to article 2221 of the French Civil Code, limitation periods are governed by the law applicable to the right they affect. Accordingly, it applied the 20-year limitation period under Swiss law to the Swiss certificate of shortage of assets. As a result, the court concluded that the action was not time-barred and granted exequatur (i.e., the court granted leave to enforce the foreign judgment).
The debtor challenged the decision of the Court of Appeal before the Cour de cassation. He argued that the Court of Appeal ought to have applied French law on limitation periods, rather than Swiss law.
The Cour de cassation confirmed the decision of the Court of Appeal, albeit substituting its own reasoning as follows: “While the rules on limitation periods of the State of origin may affect the enforceability of the judgment and, consequently, the locus standi of the party who seeks leave to enforce, and while the rules on limitation periods of the State in which enforcement is sought may affect the enforcement of the judgment declared enforceable, in contrast, the action to seek leave to enforce itself is not subject to any limitation period.”
Jul-Sep 2023 issue
Three Crowns