Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Bombay High Court at Goa has held that orders issued by Indian civil courts cannot be regarded as “foreign judgments” under the Portuguese legal provisions still applicable in the state.
Delivering the ruling, the court observed that Goa forms an inseparable part of the Indian Union and remains fully governed by the Constitution of India. Therefore, decisions delivered by courts elsewhere in the country cannot be subjected to procedures applicable to foreign court rulings.
The judgment was passed while hearing a petition concerning implementation of a divorce decree granted by a family court in Karnataka. The petitioner approached the High Court after the Margao civil registrar reportedly declined to act upon the decree, insisting that it required prior confirmation under provisions of the Portuguese Code of Civil Procedure.
Rejecting the registrar’s stand, the High Court stated that decrees issued by competent Indian courts are legally enforceable in Goa and do not require separate authentication or review under old Portuguese procedural laws.
The bench also directed registrars and sub-registrars in Goa not to insist on treating Indian judicial orders as foreign decrees in similar matters in the future.
In the specific case before it, the court instructed the concerned registrar to implement the Karnataka family court order and proceed with cancellation of the marriage registration accordingly.
