Being served from abroad
If you received court papers from a foreign court, do not set them aside because they look unfamiliar or are partly in another language. Foreign courts can enter judgments against people who do not respond, and those judgments can sometimes be brought to the United States for enforcement. Many countries, including the United States and Korea, belong to the Hague Service Convention, which sets out channels for formally delivering court papers between member countries. Whether service on you was proper is a real question, but raising it usually requires acting rather than waiting. Deadlines to respond are set by the foreign court's rules and can be shorter than you expect.
Suing someone who is overseas
When you are the one bringing the case, the first questions are which court has power over the other party and where a judgment would actually be paid. A New York judgment against someone with no assets here may need to be recognized in their home country before it can be enforced, and countries differ on whether and how they do that. Serving the papers abroad often has to follow treaty procedures, which take time. Your contract may also require arbitration or a particular court. Sometimes suing in the other party's home country is more practical, even though it means working with local counsel under a different procedure.
Organizing the case from the start
Gather the contract, invoices, correspondence, and any court documents you received, along with translations if you have them. Keep the envelope and anything else showing when and how foreign papers reached you, because that can affect both the deadline and whether service was valid. At the first meeting we consider where the dispute should be heard, what deadlines apply in each place, and how a result could be collected. Where foreign counsel is needed, we help coordinate so that positions taken abroad and in the United States stay consistent.
