{"id":157073,"date":"2025-02-28T19:22:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-28T13:52:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/?post_type=current-affairs&#038;p=157073"},"modified":"2025-02-28T19:25:27","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T13:55:27","slug":"hague-service-convention","status":"publish","type":"current-affairs","link":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/current-affairs\/hague-service-convention","title":{"rendered":"Hague Service Convention"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The U.S.<\/span><b> Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">informed a New York court that it is seeking assistance from the Indian government under the<\/span><b> Hague Service Convention <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to serve summons on Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani in a securities and wire fraud case.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-157046 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/283-67c1afb1b4f54.webp\" alt=\"Hague Service Convention\" width=\"398\" height=\"241\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/283-67c1afb1b4f54.webp 772w, https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/283-67c1afb1b4f54-300x181.webp 300w, https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/283-67c1afb1b4f54-768x465.webp 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 398px) 100vw, 398px\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Adanis have been charged under the <\/span><b>Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">for allegedly bribing Indian government officials.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Trump administration previously paused FCPA enforcement for 180 days, but the SEC\u2019s latest filing indicates the investigation will continue.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>About the Hague Service Convention<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><b>Formal Name:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The Hague Service Convention is officially called the <\/span><b>&#8220;Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters, 1965.&#8221;<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Coverage Under the Convention:<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Applicable exclusively to <\/span><b>civil and commercial matters<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">,<\/span><b> excluding criminal cases.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enforced <\/span><b>when both the requesting and receiving countries are signatories<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to the Convention.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Purpose of the Convention:<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It facilitates the service of judicial and extrajudicial documents across international borders.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ensures that defendants sued in foreign jurisdictions receive timely and actual notice of legal proceedings.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Helps in proving that documents have been properly served.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Adoption: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Established in 1965 under<\/span><b> Private International Law to streamline the cross-border service of legal documents.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Membership: Eighty-four states<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, including<\/span><b> India<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and the U.S.,<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">are parties to the Convention.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Its procedures apply only when both the sending and receiving countries are signatories to the Convention.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Central Authority for Service Requests<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Each member state must designate a central authority to process and facilitate the service of documents.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In India, the<\/span><b> Department of Legal Affairs, Ministry of Law and Justice <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">is the designated central authority for handling service requests.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Modes of Service Under the Convention<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Primary Mode of Service:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The main method of serving legal documents is through the designated central authorities of the receiving country.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Alternative Service Channels:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Apart from the primary mode, the Convention allows other channels of service, including:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Postal service<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Diplomatic and consular channels<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Direct communication between judicial officers in both states<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Direct contact between an interested party and judicial authorities in the receiving state<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Direct communication between government authorities<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>India\u2019s Accession and Reservations<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>India\u2019s Ratification<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: India ratified the Convention in 2006 but with <\/span><b>certain reservations against direct service methods.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Restrictions Imposed by India<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Opposition to Alternative Service Methods Under Article 10:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> India does not allow direct service of documents via postal channels, judicial officers, or diplomatic agents.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Documents Must Be in English<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Legal documents served in India must be in English or accompanied by an English translation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Service Must Be Indirect<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Documents cannot be served directly on a defendant in India by private judicial officers.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Valid service can only be executed through the Ministry of Law and Justice.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Restrictions on Diplomatic and Consular Service:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The service of judicial documents through diplomatic or consular channels is prohibited, except when the recipient is a national of the requesting country.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, a U.S. court cannot serve documents in India through U.S. diplomatic or consular channels unless the recipient is a U.S. national residing in India.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Grounds for Rejecting Service Requests<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Under <\/span><b>Article 13, <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India can reject a service request<\/span><b> if it violates national security or sovereignty.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The<\/span><b> Ministry of Law and Justice can refuse service requests<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, but it<\/span><b> must provide specific reasons for the refusal.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>India cannot reject a request solely on the grounds that:<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It claims exclusive jurisdiction over the<\/span><b> subject matter under its domestic law (Article 13).<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Its internal law does not recognize a<\/span><b> right of action (Article 29).<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Default Judgment in Cross-Border Cases<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A <\/span><b>default judgment<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a court ruling issued when a party (usually the defendant) <\/span><b>fails to respond or does not appear in court <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">after being served legal documents.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>In cross-border disputes<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, if a foreign government delays or refuses to serve summons, courts may issue default judgments against the absent party.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Conditions for Issuing a Default Judgment<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Under <\/span><b>Article 15 of the Hague Convention<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a default judgment can be issued only if the following conditions are met:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>The document must have been transmitted <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">through one of the prescribed methods in the Convention.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>At least six months must have elapsed since the transmission<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and the court must determine that this period is reasonable.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>No certificate of service has been received,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> despite all reasonable efforts to obtain it through the competent authorities of the recipient state.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt;\"><b>India\u2019s Position on Default Judgments<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India has expressly stated tha<\/span><b>t its courts can issue a default judgment in cross-border disputes <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">even if no certificate of service or delivery has been received,<\/span><b> provided that all conditions under Article 15 are met.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt;\"><b>Judicial Precedents regarding Hague Convention\u2019s<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Debate Over Alternative Service Methods<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: Courts have differing opinions on whether<\/span><b> India\u2019s reservation under Article 10 prohibits service through social media and email.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span style=\"font-size: 16pt;\"><b>Conflicting Judicial Interpretations<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><b>U.S. District Court Ruling: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The court ruled that service via Facebook and email was permissible in India, reasoning that<\/span><b> these methods do not fall under Article 10 restrictions.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>England and Wales High Court Ruling<\/b> <b>(2019 &#8211; Punjab National Bank v. Boris Shipping Ltd.)<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The court ruled that service must strictly follow the procedure outlined by India under the Convention.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It invalidated a lower court decision that had allowed summons through alternative methods.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><b>Parties Waiving the Convention\u2019s Provisions: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To avoid delays in service, parties often waive the Hague Convention\u2019s provisions by agreeing to alternative methods of service in contracts.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"2\"><b>California Supreme Court Ruling (2020 &#8211; Rockefeller Technology Investments v. Changzhou SinoType Technology Co.): <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The court held that service is valid if both parties have contractually agreed to an alternative method, even if a signatory state has objected to <\/span><b>Article 10.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"vc_table_green\"><\/p>\n<table style=\"width: 99.6375%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 111.19%; text-align: center;\" colspan=\"2\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Also Read<\/b><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/editorial-analysis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Daily Editorials<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/daily-current-affairs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Daily Current Affairs<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/quiz\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Daily Current Affairs Quiz<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/mains-answer-writing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Daily Main Answer Writing<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-previous-year-papers?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Previous+Year+Papers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Check Out Previous Years Papers From PW Store<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/upsc-test-series-courses\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>UPSC Test Series<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 49.797%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-textbooks?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Textbooks\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Check Out UPSC NCERT Textbooks From PW Store<\/b><\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 61.393%; text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.pw.live\/govt-entrance-exams\/upsc-books\/upsc-modules?utm_source=SEO&#038;utm_medium=PW+Live&#038;utm_campaign=UPSC+Modules\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>Check Out UPSC Modules From PW Store<\/b><\/a><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) informed a New York court that it is seeking assistance from the Indian government under the Hague Service Convention to serve summons on Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani in a securities and wire fraud case.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":157052,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"paper-wise":[2084],"subject":[2102],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/157073"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/current-affairs"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=157073"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/157073\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":157078,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/current-affairs\/157073\/revisions\/157078"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157073"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157073"},{"taxonomy":"paper-wise","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/paper-wise?post=157073"},{"taxonomy":"subject","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pwonlyias.com\/stage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/subject?post=157073"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}