More security for businesses promised as judgements now enforceable in 60 countries

Local businesses are promised greater security now with the newly-passed Foreign Judgement (Reciprocal Enforcement) Amendment Bill that allows judgements here to be enforceable in 60 countries.

The Bill was piloted by Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, SC and passed after robust debate on Thursday night in the National Assembly.

Essentially, once the Bill is enacted, judgements or court orders from Guyana can be enforceable in 60 countries around the world including major jurisdictions in Europe, Asia, North America and Africa.

And judgements from those countries are enforceable in Guyana because the Bill caters for reciprocity.  The Attorney General said this is a “remarkable accomplishment” for Guyana.

Further, he pointed out that the new amendments will provide greater security to the local business sector.

“Companies from all over the world are coming to do business in Guyana.

“If they leave a debt here and refuse to pay, a litigant now can take them to Court, get a judgement from our High Court and follow them to 60 jurisdictions across the globe.

“Once they have assets in those jurisdictions, (the litigants) can use this very judgement in Guyana,” Nandlall explained.

He posited that the commercial community must be appreciative of this.

Opposition Parliamentarian, Roysdale Forde, SC, who is the shadow Minister of Legal Affairs, pointed out that the Bill seemed to heavily resemble Kenyan legislation. And he believed the government could have done more to make the Bill more modern.

The Attorney General, however, disagreed.

He said the Bill was crafted based on learnings from several countries and took guidance from the Commonwealth model. Directly responding to Mr. Forde, Nandlall pointed out that the Commonwealth model will soon be adopted across the globe, therefore Guyana is leading in terms of implementation.