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2019 års Haagkonvention om erkännande och verkställighet av utländska domar på privaträttens område: En undersökning av konventionen och dess betydelse för svensk rätt

Wilgotsson, Ebba LU (2023) JURM02 20231
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract
The Hague Judgments Convention is predicted to enter into force in the EU on September 1st this year. Consequently, the Convention will be directly applicable in Sweden. The objective of the Convention is to improve access to effective remedies on a global level, and in turn reduce the risks and costs typically associated with cross-border dispute resolution. The hope is that the Convention will promote the circulation of judgments and facilitate cross-border trade and investment. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the Hague Judgments Convention and its implementation in Swedish law, in light of the existing regulation in Swedish law concerning the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments in civil and commercial matters, as... (More)
The Hague Judgments Convention is predicted to enter into force in the EU on September 1st this year. Consequently, the Convention will be directly applicable in Sweden. The objective of the Convention is to improve access to effective remedies on a global level, and in turn reduce the risks and costs typically associated with cross-border dispute resolution. The hope is that the Convention will promote the circulation of judgments and facilitate cross-border trade and investment. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the Hague Judgments Convention and its implementation in Swedish law, in light of the existing regulation in Swedish law concerning the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments in civil and commercial matters, as well as the objective of the Convention. The thesis is conducted using a legal dogmatic method. The explanation of the current regulations in the field shows that there are currently no international instruments outside the EU and EFTA that regulate the area covered by the Hague Judgments Convention, apart from the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements. The main principle in Swedish law is that a foreign judgment may only be recognized or enforced if it is prescribed by law. It can be discussed whether Sweden, in some cases, has an obligation under Article 6 of the ECHR to recognize or enforce a judgment even if it is not prescribed by law. In NJA 1973 p. 628, evidence can be found suggesting a possibility to make exceptions from the main principle regarding judgments preceded by prorogation agreements. However, due to two more recent judgments, the possibility to make exceptions should be considered limited, at least in cases where a judgment is not preceded by a prorogation agreement.

The thesis concludes that the Convention is likely to improve the possibilities for recognition and enforcement of third-country judgments in Sweden, potentially also of Swedish judgments in third countries depending on the national legislation of these countries. However, Sweden’s restrictive national legislation may harm the reciprocity on which the Hague Judgments Convention is based. The structure of the Convention allows Swedish courts to base their jurisdiction on more generous direct grounds of jurisdiction according to Swedish legislation, while at the same time refusing recognition or enforcement of a foreign judgment rendered on the same ground through the application of the Convention’s less generous rules of indirect jurisdiction. Furthermore, in accordance with the case law of the ECtHR, Sweden may be obliged to examine the compatibility of foreign judgments with the ECHR before recognition or enforcement can take place, especially regarding judgments rendered by countries that are not themselves bound by the ECHR. If consequences of recognition or enforcement of a judgment would risk violating the ECHR, the judgment should be refused, either through the application of the public policy reservation in the Convention or of the ECHR. Due to Sweden’s obligations under the ECHR, the grounds for refusal in the Convention are possibly not as optional as prescribed in the Convention, but the predictability of the Convention can be questioned. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
2019 års Haagkonvention om erkännande och verkställighet av utländska domar på privaträttens område förutses träda i kraft i EU den 1 september i år. Konventionen blir därmed direkt tillämplig i Sverige. Målet med konventionen är att den ska förbättra tillgången till effektiva rättsmedel på en global nivå, vilken i sin tur ska minska de risker och kostnader som vanligtvis är förknippade med gränsöverskridande tvistlösning. Förhoppningen är att konventionen ska främja rörligheten av domar och underlätta gränsöverskridande handel och investeringar. Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka 2019 års Haagkonvention och dess införande i svensk rätt, i ljuset av redan existerande reglering i svensk rätt av frågan om erkännande och verkställighet av... (More)
2019 års Haagkonvention om erkännande och verkställighet av utländska domar på privaträttens område förutses träda i kraft i EU den 1 september i år. Konventionen blir därmed direkt tillämplig i Sverige. Målet med konventionen är att den ska förbättra tillgången till effektiva rättsmedel på en global nivå, vilken i sin tur ska minska de risker och kostnader som vanligtvis är förknippade med gränsöverskridande tvistlösning. Förhoppningen är att konventionen ska främja rörligheten av domar och underlätta gränsöverskridande handel och investeringar. Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka 2019 års Haagkonvention och dess införande i svensk rätt, i ljuset av redan existerande reglering i svensk rätt av frågan om erkännande och verkställighet av utländska domar på privaträttens område och konventionens mål. Undersökningen genomförs med tillämpning av en rättsdogmatisk metod. Redogörelsen av de regelverk som för närvarande finns på området visar att det idag, utöver 2005 års Haagkonvention om avtal om val av domstol, saknas internationella instrument utanför EU och EFTA som reglerar det område som omfattas av 2019 års Haagkonvention. Huvudregeln i svensk rätt är att erkännande och verkställighet av utländska domar kräver stöd i lag. Det kan diskuteras huruvida Sverige i vissa fall har en skyldighet enligt artikel 6 EKMR att erkänna eller verkställa en dom utan stöd i lag. Det har i NJA 1973 s. 628 visat sig finnas viss möjlighet till undantag från huvudregeln i fråga om domar som föregåtts av prorogationsavtal. Med anledning av två senare rättsfall får möjligheten emellertid anses vara mycket liten, åtminstone i de fall domen inte föregåtts av prorogationsavtal.

Undersökningen leder fram till slutsatsen att konventionen sannolikt kommer att förbättra möjligheter för erkännande och verkställighet av tredjelandsdomar i Sverige, potentiellt även av svenska domar i tredjeländer beroende på dessa länders nationella lagstiftning. Sveriges restriktiva nationella lagstiftning kan dock komma att skada den reciprocitet som 2019 års Haagkonvention bygger på. Konventionens uppbyggnad tillåter svenska domstolar att grunda sin behörighet på mer generösa direkta behörighetsgrunder enligt svensk lagstiftning, och samtidigt vägra erkännande eller verkställighet av en utländsk dom meddelad på samma grunder genom tillämpning av konventionens mindre generösa indirekta behörighetsregler. Vidare kan Sverige i enlighet med Europadomstolens praxis vara skyldig att kontrollera utländska domars förenlighet med EKMR innan erkännande eller verkställighet kan ske, framför allt i fråga om domar meddelade av länder som inte själva är bundna av EKMR. Om det visar sig att konsekvenserna av ett erkännande eller en verkställighet skulle bryta mot EKMR bör vägran ske, antingen genom tillämpning av ordre public-förbehållet i konventionen eller av EKMR. Med anledning av Sveriges förpliktelser enligt EKMR borde vägransgrunderna i konventionen inte vara så valfria som de föreskrivs i konventionen, men det går att ifrågasätta konventionens förutsebarhet. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Wilgotsson, Ebba LU
supervisor
organization
alternative title
The Hague Judgments Convention and Its Significance for Swedish Law
course
JURM02 20231
year
type
H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
subject
keywords
Internationell privaträtt, private international law
language
Swedish
id
9115725
date added to LUP
2023-06-13 14:22:31
date last changed
2023-06-13 14:22:31
@misc{9115725,
  abstract     = {{The Hague Judgments Convention is predicted to enter into force in the EU on September 1st this year. Consequently, the Convention will be directly applicable in Sweden. The objective of the Convention is to improve access to effective remedies on a global level, and in turn reduce the risks and costs typically associated with cross-border dispute resolution. The hope is that the Convention will promote the circulation of judgments and facilitate cross-border trade and investment. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the Hague Judgments Convention and its implementation in Swedish law, in light of the existing regulation in Swedish law concerning the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments in civil and commercial matters, as well as the objective of the Convention. The thesis is conducted using a legal dogmatic method. The explanation of the current regulations in the field shows that there are currently no international instruments outside the EU and EFTA that regulate the area covered by the Hague Judgments Convention, apart from the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements. The main principle in Swedish law is that a foreign judgment may only be recognized or enforced if it is prescribed by law. It can be discussed whether Sweden, in some cases, has an obligation under Article 6 of the ECHR to recognize or enforce a judgment even if it is not prescribed by law. In NJA 1973 p. 628, evidence can be found suggesting a possibility to make exceptions from the main principle regarding judgments preceded by prorogation agreements. However, due to two more recent judgments, the possibility to make exceptions should be considered limited, at least in cases where a judgment is not preceded by a prorogation agreement.

The thesis concludes that the Convention is likely to improve the possibilities for recognition and enforcement of third-country judgments in Sweden, potentially also of Swedish judgments in third countries depending on the national legislation of these countries. However, Sweden’s restrictive national legislation may harm the reciprocity on which the Hague Judgments Convention is based. The structure of the Convention allows Swedish courts to base their jurisdiction on more generous direct grounds of jurisdiction according to Swedish legislation, while at the same time refusing recognition or enforcement of a foreign judgment rendered on the same ground through the application of the Convention’s less generous rules of indirect jurisdiction. Furthermore, in accordance with the case law of the ECtHR, Sweden may be obliged to examine the compatibility of foreign judgments with the ECHR before recognition or enforcement can take place, especially regarding judgments rendered by countries that are not themselves bound by the ECHR. If consequences of recognition or enforcement of a judgment would risk violating the ECHR, the judgment should be refused, either through the application of the public policy reservation in the Convention or of the ECHR. Due to Sweden’s obligations under the ECHR, the grounds for refusal in the Convention are possibly not as optional as prescribed in the Convention, but the predictability of the Convention can be questioned.}},
  author       = {{Wilgotsson, Ebba}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{2019 års Haagkonvention om erkännande och verkställighet av utländska domar på privaträttens område: En undersökning av konventionen och dess betydelse för svensk rätt}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}