The Jurisdiction of Foreign Courts and the Enforcement of Their Judgments in Tunisia - A Need for Reconsideration

Abstract

Pursuant to Article 11 of the Tunisian Code of Private International Law (CPIL), academics in Tunisia support the idea that the control of the jurisdiction of foreign courts was completely abolished. This article criticizes this prevailing opinion in Tunisia and shows that reintroducing some jurisdictional review is highly recommended. It demonstrates that abolishing the control of the “compétence indirecte” leads to the inconsistencies in the code itself and makes international conventions more restrictive than domestic law. It also demonstrates that the absence of jurisdictional review exposes defendants to exorbitant jurisdictions, promotes forum shopping and goes against fundamental tenets of preserving procedural human rights.

Keywords: Control of international jurisdiction of foreign courts, enforcement of foreign judgments, exequatur, abolition, exorbitant jurisdiction, human rights, forum shopping

JEL Classification: K19, K33, K41