Where to sue and under which law
Many cross-border contracts contain forum selection or arbitration clauses, and New York courts generally enforce them. New York is also a common choice of law and forum for international commercial contracts, partly because a state statute lets parties to larger contracts select New York law and courts even without other ties to the state. When the contract is silent, the court must have jurisdiction over the foreign defendant, which depends on that defendant's contacts with the forum. International arbitration is frequently preferred because arbitral awards are enforceable in many countries under a widely adopted treaty, the New York Convention, while recognition of court judgments abroad is less uniform.
Service, evidence, and translation
Delivering a complaint to a defendant abroad often has to follow international treaties, such as the Hague Service Convention, and some countries require formal channels that take considerable time. Gathering documents or testimony abroad can involve letters of request, treaty procedures, or the cooperation of foreign courts, and some countries restrict discovery for use in American proceedings. Federal law also allows parties to foreign proceedings to seek evidence located in the United States, a tool that works in the other direction. Documents in other languages generally need certified translations for court use. Gather the contract, purchase orders, shipping documents, payment records, and correspondence in their original languages.
Planning around collection
A judgment is only as useful as the assets it can reach. Ask early whether the defendant has receivables, accounts, or property in the United States, and whether a New York judgment would be recognized where its assets are. New York has its own statute for recognizing foreign country money judgments, and other countries apply their own rules to American judgments, which do not always match. In a first meeting, we look at the contract, the countries involved, the amount in dispute, where the other side's assets are, and whether arbitration, litigation in New York, or proceedings abroad with local counsel makes the most practical sense. That choice is easier to make before filing than to undo afterward.
