American judgments, from either State or U.S. Federal Courts may be recognised and enforced in Ontario, Canada.
The test for whether the Court of Ontario will recognize and enforce a U.S. judgment is as follows:
- did the U.S. Court have jurisdiction, in accordance with the principles of private international law as applied by Canadian courts?
- is the judgment final and conclusive?
- is the judgment for a definite and ascertainable sum of money or, if not a money judgment (e.g. an injunction), are its terms sufficiently clear, limited in scope and do the principles of comity require the domestic court to enforce it?
The Ontario Court will also consider the following, limited defences of:
- fraud (i.e. whether the U.S. judgment was obtained by fraud);
- natural justice (i.e. whether the U.S. proceedings were contrary to Canadian notions of fundamental justice); and
- public policy (i.e. whether the U.S. judgment was contrary to our view of basic morality).
Our lawyers have experience with obtaining recognition and enforcement of U.S. judgments in Ontario.
Our lawyers have successfully struck out unrelated counterclaims brought by defendants in response to actions to enforce U.S. judgments in Ontario. See, for example, Carolina Foods, Inc. v. 838116 Ontario Inc.
If you or your client have obtained or are seeking a judgment of either State or U.S. District Courts, and are seeking to have that judgment recognized or enforced in Ontario, Canada, please contact us for a free initial consultation on 416-979-2020.
Please also see our related practice area webpages: Toronto Attorneys for the Enforcement of U.S. Judgments, Toronto Attorneys for U.S. Debt Enforcement, Toronto Cross-Border and International Attorneys, Toronto International Sale of Goods & Recovery of Accounts Receivables Attorneys and Toronto Attorneys for Jurisdiction | Forum Challenges.
Brief informational summaries about insurance litigation, commercial litigation and family law litigation matters in the courts of Ontario and Canada are periodically published on our website. Please note that our website content is for informational purposes only, and should not be construed or relied upon to provide legal advice. If you require legal advice, please request an initial consultation with Gilbertson Davis LLP using the Request Consultation Form on this webpage or by contacting our Intake Coordinator on (416) 979-2020, ext. 223 (both subject to the Terms of Use described on our Contact page).
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