Letters Blogatory

The Blog of International Judicial Assistance | By Ted Folkman of Folkman LLC

Posts tagged “Recognition and Enforcement”

Case of the Day: Clay v. Hilton

Posted on April 29, 2020

The case of the day is Clay v. Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (W.D. Wash. 2020). Clay was in Phuket, Thailand, for a business conference. When he was strode on the stage during his presentation, he tripped and fell, suffering a serious injury. He sued the company that owned the hotel and the company that managed it for negligence in a Thai court. The case went to trial, but Clay didn’t attend, because his doctors had not yet cleared him for international travel. The Thai court refused to continue the trial as Clay had asked. Clay presented his evidence in writing only. The defendants did present witnesses, but Clay’s lawyers did not cross-examine them or present any witnesses of their own. The court held that…

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Case of the Day: Vischer AG v. Apollo Enterprise Solutions

Posted on October 28, 2019

The case of the day is Vischer AG v. Apollo Enterprise Solutions, Inc. (Cal. Ct. App. 2019). Vischler, a Swiss firm, had obtained a judgment for $160,000 for breach of contract against Apollo in the Commercial Court in Zurich. Vischer sought recognition in California and asserted that the Swiss judgment entitled it to damages in the judgment amount, interest, attorney’s fees, and costs. The parties settled the case for $90,000. The settlement agreement stated that nothing in the settlement precluded either party from filing a motion for attorney’s fees. Visccher did bring a motion for fees, and Apollo opposed the motion and argued that it should receive an award of fees. The Superior Court denied both motions, and Vischer appealed. Apollo cross-appealed, too, arguing…

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Case of the Day: DeJoria v. Maghreb Petroleum Exploration

Posted on August 20, 2019

The case of the day is DeJoria v. Maghreb Petroleum Exploration S.A. (5th Cir. 2019). I covered a prior Fifth Circuit decision back in 2015, and an even earlier district court decision in 2014. John Paul DeJoria,the billionaire behind the Paul Mitchell hair care line, went into the oil exploration business, hoping to discover reserves in Morocco. The Moroccan government supported the project. But when his venture failed to find the hoped-for reserves, he had to flee the company. Eventually he was sued by the new management of the venture, Maghreb Petroleum Exploration, sued DeJoria in Morocco and obtained a judgment for more than $100 million. Maghreb came to Texas to seek recognition and enforcement.

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