As noted in an analytical report by Pravo.ru, the Arbitrazh Court of the Ural District concluded that a company from Kazakhstan has the right to enforce its court’s judgment in Russia, even if it cooperates with states considered unfriendly to the Russian Federation. Such a business is not considered a threat to Russia’s legal order (Case No. A76-43222/2024).

In another case, the Arbitrazh Court of the Volga-Vyatka District allowed Swiss company Prime Engeniring SA to enforce an ICAC award against the Russian enterprise “Nizhny Novgorod Autocomponents.” According to the arbitral decision, the Russian party must pay the foreign contractor nearly €400,000 in debt, penalties, and legal costs. The court concluded that the mere issuance of a writ of execution for the compulsory enforcement of an arbitral award by a company from an unfriendly country does not violate the principles of Russia’s economic, political, and legal system. Furthermore, the disputed legal relations are not regulated by the President’s counter-sanctions decrees.

According to KKMP Partner Stanislav Dobshevich, the courts reached a logical and correct conclusion regarding the possibility of recognizing and enforcing the relevant decisions within Russia. The law provides a closed list of reasons for refusing recognition and enforcement of court and arbitral awards, and a connection with unfriendly entities is not included in this list, the lawyer points out. Consequently, if there are no other grounds for refusal, Russian courts should recognize and enforce decisions of foreign courts and arbitrations even upon the application of unfriendly entities, despite the difficult geopolitical situation.

Specifically, Stanislav notes:

“This is fully consistent with global trends: courts in states that have imposed sanctions against Russia still enforce Russian judgments. There are examples of this in the USA, Great Britain, Canada, France, and other countries. If we want Russian companies to continue to have the opportunity to recognize and enforce judgments against foreign contractors, it is necessary that foreign judgments also be enforced in Russia.”