Enforcement of Foreign Judgment in India is not automatic

Judgment dated 8.6.2026 of the High Court of Bombay in Interim Application No.569 of 2026 in Commercial Suit No.6 of 2026 of Limited Liability Company Vs. Tecnimont S.P.A

The plaintiff filed the commercial suit in terms of section 13 of CPC for a civil court decree for Rs.19.5 thousand crores, on the basis of the conclusive evidence of the judgment dated 5.12.2025 of the Commercial Court of Moscow against the defendant for the amount granted therein.

In the said suit, the plaintiff filed interim injunction application from disposing or removing any of their assets as also to maintain their assets for the value of claim.

The defendant objected to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Court and consequently, to the conclusiveness of the said foreign judgment.

conclusiveness can be dislodged if any of the exceptions under clauses (a) to (f) of Section 13 apply, and the Indian Court can refuse to accept such a presumption of competent jurisdiction if the record shows to the contrary. It can also be proved by the defendant that the foreign judgment was not pronounced by a court of competent jurisdiction.

Section 13 CPC – Enforcement of Russian Judgment

Pendency of any appeal filed against the Russian judgment, or that it is enforceable in Russia, would not fall under any of the exceptions specified under section 13 (a) to (f) of the CPC and is no bar in commencing an action on the foreign judgment and seeking an Indian decree in terms thereof. Even otherwise the appeal filed by the defendant is now dismissed.

In the present case, in view of the arbitration agreements between the parties and the plaintiff’s participation in the international arbitration proceedings pertaining to the same claim arising out of the same dispute, the competence of the Russian court in entertaining the plaintiff’s claim is doubtful. Therefore, the presumption under Section 14 of the CPC cannot be applied at the pre-trial stage. As discussed in detail in the paragraphs above, the defendant has raised serious objections in view of the exceptions under Section 13 of the CPC to contend that the Russian court’s judgment cannot be accepted as conclusive evidence at this stage.