civil-procedure process england-and-wales
Can people sue other people in foreign countries and force them to respond?
<p>In the movie Denial (and obviously in real life too) David Irving sues Deborah Lipstadt in the British courts not the American courts. </p>

<p>How does that work? Can people sue other people in foreign countries and force them to respond? </p>

<p>Is she forced to either attend/settle, or can she ignore it?</p>

<p>It's hard to know why people choose the venues they choose. But, the UK is known for having very <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Chiropractic_Association_v_Singh" rel="nofollow noreferrer">plaintiff-friendly libel law</a> (although less-so now).</p>

<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libel_tourism#Laws_addressing_libel_tourism" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Libel tourism</a> was much more feasible in 1996, when David Irving brought his suit. But, as of 2014, "claimants wanting to sue defendants who do not live in Europe will have to prove that England is the most appropriate place for the case." (<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/26/world/europe/new-law-makes-suing-for-libel-harder-in-england.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">New Law Makes Suing for Libel Harder in England</a>)</p>

<p>Further, in the U.S., the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SPEECH_Act" rel="nofollow noreferrer">SPEECH Act</a> of 2010 makes foreign libel judgements unenforceable in the U.S. unless the defendant would have been found liable even under U.S. Law.</p>

<p>If a foreign court enters a judgment against someone by default that judgment will probably be enforceable in the country where the judgment was entered (or in the case of the U.S. in the state where it was entered with easy domestication to another U.S. state) against assets in that country. So, if you own real estate, or have bank accounts, or work, or do business is the forum state, you probably can't afford to ignore such a lawsuit.</p>

<p>Many U.S. judgments (especially in "tort" matters) are not automatically enforceable abroad, mostly because foreign countries are concerned about the non-economic and punitive damages available in U.S. courts in such lawsuits. Many foreign judgments (for example in defamation cases as noted in another answer to your question) are not enforceable in the U.S. (similarly, most judgments in Saudi Arabian courts are not enforceable due to a lack of due process in the court system there).</p>

<p>A foreign judgment in a contract case or in an arbitration forum agreed to be contract, is much more likely to be enforceable in another country, although what is necessary to "domesticate" a foreign judgment varies a fair amount. Some countries require what amounts to proof from scratch of the entire case almost, but may allow evidence from the prior case such as transcripts to be admitted, while other countries, particularly when a recognition of foreign judgments act applies, will routinely rubber stamp certain kinds of foreign judgments.</p>

<p>Many U.S. states have adopted the <a href="http://www.uniformlaws.org/ActSummary.aspx?title=Foreign-Country%20Money%20Judgments%20Recognition%20Act" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Uniform Recognition of Foreign Money Judgments Act</a>, either in its original 1962 version or with 2005 amendments. The official summary of this act is as follows:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>The first step towards enforcement is recognition of the foreign
  country judgment.  The recognition occurs in a state court when an
  appropriate action is filed for the purpose.  If the judgment meets
  the statutory standards, the state court will recognize it.  It then
  may be enforced as if it is a judgment of another state of the United
  States.  Enforcement may then proceed, which means the judgment
  creditor may proceed against the property of the judgment debtor to
  satisfy the judgment amount.</p>
  
  <p>First, it must be shown that the judgment is conclusive, final and
  enforceable in the country of origin.  Certain money judgments are
  excluded, such as judgments on taxes, fines or criminal-like penalties
  and judgments relating to domestic relations.  Domestic relations
  judgments are enforced under other statutes, already existing in every
  state.  A foreign-country judgment must not be recognized if it comes
  from a court system that is not impartial or that dishonors due
  process, or there is no personal jurisdiction over the defendant or
  over the subject matter of the litigation.  There are a number of
  grounds that may make a U.S. court deny recognition, i.e., the
  defendant did not receive notice of the proceeding or the claim is
  repugnant to American public policy.  A final, conclusive judgment
  enforceable in the country of origin, if it is not excluded for one of
  the enumerated reasons, must be recognized and enforced.  The 1962 Act
  and the 2005 Act generally operate the same.</p>
  
  <p>The primary differences between the 1962 and the 2005 Uniform Acts are
  as follows:</p>
  
  <ol>
  <li><p>The 2005 Act makes it clear that a judgment entitled to full faith and credit under the U.S. Constitution is not enforceable under this
  Act.  This clarifies the relationship between the Foreign-Country
  Money Judgments Act and the Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act. 
  Recognition by a court is a different procedure than enforcement of a
  sister state judgment from within the United States.</p></li>
  <li><p>The 2005 Act expressly provides that a party seeking recognition of a foreign judgment has the burden to prove that the judgment is
  subject to the Uniform Act.  Burden of proof was not addressed in the
  1962 Act.</p></li>
  <li><p>Conversely, the 2005 Act imposes the burden of proof for establishing a specific ground for non-recognition upon the party
  raising it.  Again, burden of proof is not addressed in the 1962 Act.</p></li>
  <li><p>The 2005 Act addresses the specific procedure for seeking enforcement.  If recognition is sought as an original matter, the
  party seeking recognition must file an action in the court to obtain
  recognition.  If recognition is sought in a pending action, it may be
  filed as a counter-claim, cross-claim or affirmative defense in the
  pending action.  The 1962 Act does not address the procedure to obtain
  recognition at all, leaving that to other state law.</p></li>
  <li><p>The 2005 Act provides a statute of limitations on enforcement of a foreign-country judgment.  If the judgment cannot be enforced any
  longer in the country of origin, it may not be enforced in a court of
  an enacting state.  If there is no limitation on enforcement in the
  country of origin, the judgment becomes unenforceable in an enacting
  state after 15 years from the time the judgment is effective in the
  country of origin.</p></li>
  </ol>
</blockquote>
