With increased cross-border disputes in civil and commercial matters across the globe, this edition gives practicing litigators an overview of the provision of mechanisms for international judicial assistance across different legal systems. Building on Ristau's classic multi-volume work, this book brings up-to-date background and practical guidance that today's practitioners need.

"A critical consideration in transnational civil and commercial litigation is whether a judgment ultimately rendered by a court in favor of the successful party will be respected and enforced outside the jurisdiction where it was rendered-especially in foreign jurisdictions where the judgment debtor might have assets. It is an issue for practitioners to consider carefully, not only after such a dispute has arisen but equally in the context of negotiating (or deciding to forego) a contractual choice of forum clause. In this area, domestic law continues to predominate. No general principle of law or broad rule of customary international law compels domestic courts to enforce foreign judgments in civil or commercial matters. Accordingly, in the absence of a comprehensive international arrangement or broadly-applicable set of "judicial assistance" rules and procedures, domestic judicial systems have not traditionally embraced an obligation to recognize or enforce judgments rendered in other states. Where they have done so, it has traditionally been as an exercise of "international comity" rather than an obligation. That said, many states have entered into bilateral arrangements with their neighbors (sometimes called "judicial assistance treaties") providing inter alia for mutual recognition and enforcement of civil and commercial judgments on the basis of reciprocity. In addition, some regional "harmonization" arrangements exist, for example within the European Union and the Organization of American States ("OAS"). More consequentially, in 2019, the Hague Conference on Private International Law concluded a multilateral "judgments" convention, now in force for a small number of states but with the potential to transform this area of international civil and commercial practice. These diverse aspects are discussed in some detail below. By way of background, we begin with an overview of the relevant law in the United States, followed by a more detailed examination of the issues related to the enforcement of foreign judgments in U.S. courts, including several notable developments. We also discuss the related topics of enforcement of arbitral awards and choice of court agreements. The chapter then turns to an overview of the law governing recognition and enforcement of judgments in countries other than the United States. It concludes with an overview of the recently-adopted 2019 Hague Judgments Convention, which holds the promise of a new widely-accepted regime on the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters"--