Reciprocating Territory

Explanation :

• On 17th January, 2020, the Ministry of Law and Justice issued an Extraordinary Gazette Notification, declaring the United Arab Emirates to be a “reciprocating territory” under Section 44 A of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908. The notification also declared a list of courts in the UAE to be “Superior Courts” under the same section.
• Apart from UAE, the other countries declared to be “reciprocating territories” are: United Kingdom, Singapore, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Trinidad & Tobago, New Zealand, the Cook Islands (including Niue) and the Trust Territories of Western Samoa, Hong Kong, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and Aden.

Reciprocating Territory

• Essentially, orders passed by certain designated courts from a ‘reciprocating territory’ can be implemented in India, by filing a copy of the decree concerned in a District Court here.
• The courts so designated are called Superior Courts.
• It simply means that the foreign civil decrees passed by courts in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) can now be executed in India.

Limitations

• The scope of the Section is restricted to decrees for payment of money, not being sums payable in respect of taxes or other charges of a like nature or in respect of a fine or other penalty.

Impact

• The move is widely seen to act as a major deterrent for those fleeing to India after committing major financial fraud, including bank loan default in UAE.