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Keywords

plaintiffjurisdictionappealdue processsustained
plaintiffjurisdictiondue processsustained

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Osorio v. Dow Chemical Co., 635 F.3d 1277, 22 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. C 1926

Facts

The plaintiffs, 150 Nicaraguan agricultural workers, were awarded over $97 million by a Nicaraguan court for injuries they claimed to have sustained from exposure to dibromochloropropane, a pesticide supplied by Dow and used by Dole on banana plantations. They sought to enforce this judgment in Florida under the Florida Recognition Act. The district court found several grounds for nonrecognition, including lack of jurisdiction and due process concerns.

The plaintiffs, 150 Nicaraguan agricultural workers, were awarded over $97 million by a Nicaraguan court for injuries they claimed to have sustained from exposure to dibromochloropropane, a pesticide supplied by Dow and used by Dole on banana plantations.

Issue

Whether the Nicaraguan judgment is entitled to recognition and enforcement under the Florida Uniform Out-of-country Foreign Money-Judgments Recognition Act.

Whether the Nicaraguan judgment is entitled to recognition and enforcement under the Florida Uniform Out-of-country Foreign Money-Judgments Recognition Act.

Rule

The Florida Recognition Act provides that a foreign judgment is not conclusive if the foreign court lacked personal or subject matter jurisdiction, if the judgment was rendered under a system that does not provide due process, or if recognition would be repugnant to Florida public policy.

The Florida Recognition Act provides that a foreign judgment is not conclusive if the foreign court lacked personal or subject matter jurisdiction, if the judgment was rendered under a system that does not provide due process, or if recognition would be repugnant to Florida public policy.

Analysis

The court applied the Florida Recognition Act and agreed with the district court's findings that the Nicaraguan judgment could not be recognized due to the lack of personal and subject matter jurisdiction, as well as due process violations. The court emphasized that the Nicaraguan court's procedures did not meet the standards required for enforcement in Florida.

Based on the first three grounds enumerated in the district court's dispositive order, we agree that the Nicaraguan judgment is not due recognition and enforcement under the Florida Recognition Act.

Conclusion

The Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's decision, holding that the Nicaraguan judgment was not due recognition and enforcement under the Florida Recognition Act.

We therefore affirm the district court's judgment; however, we do not address the broader issue of whether Nicaragua as a whole 'does not provide impartial tribunals' and decline to adopt the district court's holding on that question.

Who won?

Dole Food Company and Dow Chemical Company prevailed in the case because the court found that the Nicaraguan judgment did not meet the criteria for recognition under Florida law.

Dole Food Company and Dow Chemical Company prevailed in the case because the court found that the Nicaraguan judgment did not meet the criteria for recognition under Florida law.

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