Grounds for non-recognition

§ 5304. Grounds for non-recognition. (a) A court of this state may not recognize a foreign country judgment if:

1. the judgment was rendered under a judicial system that does not provide impartial tribunals or procedures compatible with the requirements of due process of law;

2. the foreign court did not have personal jurisdiction over the defendant; or

3. the foreign court did not have jurisdiction over the subject matter.

(b) A court of this state need not recognize a foreign country judgment if:

1. the defendant in the proceeding in the foreign court did not receive notice of the proceeding in sufficient time to enable the defendant to defend;

2. the judgment was obtained by fraud that deprived the losing party of an adequate opportunity to present its case;

3. the judgment or the cause of action on which the judgment is based is repugnant to the public policy of this state or of the United States;

4. the judgment conflicts with another final and conclusive judgment;

5. the proceeding in the foreign court was contrary to an agreement between the parties under which the dispute in question was to be determined otherwise than by a proceeding in that court;

6. in the case of jurisdiction based only on personal service, the foreign court was a seriously inconvenient forum for the trial of the action;

7. the judgment was rendered in circumstances that raise substantial doubt about the integrity of the rendering courts with respect to the judgment;

8. the specific proceeding in the foreign court leading to the judgment was not compatible with the requirements of due process of law; or

9. the cause of action resulted in a defamation judgment obtained in a jurisdiction outside the United States, unless the court before which the matter is brought sitting in this state first determines that the defamation law applied in the foreign court's adjudication provided at least as much protection for freedom of speech and press in that case as would be provided by both the United States and New York constitutions.

(c) A party resisting recognition of a foreign country judgment has the burden of establishing that a ground for non-recognition stated in subdivision (a) or (b) of this section exists; provided that the party seeking recognition shall bear the burden of establishing the adequate protections for freedom of speech and press required as a condition to recognition under paragraph nine of subdivision (b) of this section if the party resisting recognition establishes that the judgment is for defamation.