The consideration of economic cases involving foreign parties in the Republic of Uzbekistan entails compliance with a number of formal requirements applicable to documents issued outside the Republic. These requirements are set forth in Article 246 of the Economic Procedural Code (EPC) and clarified by Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 27 (20 November 2023).
What exactly is required by law and judicial practice — key rules
1) Mandatory consular legalisation or apostille
Rule: Documents issued abroad by organisations/authorities of foreign states shall be accepted by the economic courts of Uzbekistan only if they bear consular legalisation or an apostille, unless otherwise provided by law or by an international treaty to which Uzbekistan and the issuing state are parties.
Comment of the Plenum: The Plenum clarifies that legalisation confirms the origin and official status of a document; at the same time, the court retains the right to verify the accuracy of the information contained therein.
2) Exceptions to the apostille/legalisation rule — international treaties
If Uzbekistan and the relevant state are parties to a treaty on legal assistance or another agreement (or if the state is a party to the 1961 Hague Convention — Apostille), documents may be accepted without additional legalisation in accordance with such treaties. The Plenum specifically notes that economic courts may accept official documents from states party to treaties on legal assistance without legalisation.
3) Translation of documents into the state language / language of proceedings
Rule: Documents drafted in a foreign language, when submitted to an economic court, must be accompanied by a duly certified translation into the state language or into the language of proceedings. Exceptions may apply under international instruments. If a translation/certification is missing, the document shall not be accepted into proceedings.
Practical clarification of the Plenum: Submission of documents without a duly certified translation results in the return of the statement of claim. At the same time, the Plenum notes that if the claim is admitted (and the document set was not fully verified at admission) but violations are later discovered (e.g. absence of translation), the case may nevertheless proceed on the merits.
4) Timing aspect — apostille must be affixed prior to filing the claim
The Plenum indicates a practical point: an apostille (if required) must be affixed to the documents before the date of filing the statement of claim with the court. This is essential when preparing the case file.
Consequences of non-submission/non-compliance of documents
Failure to submit documents, or non-compliance, results in non-acceptance of documents and return of the statement of claim where mandatory certified translation or required legalisation (apostille) is absent, in accordance with the EPC. Furthermore, documents prepared in violation of statutory requirements cannot be used as evidence.
At the same time, even a legalised document remains subject to judicial review (the Plenum stresses that legalisation confirms the origin but does not preclude procedural verification of its content).
In certain cases, the court may proceed to hear the case on the merits if formal deficiencies are identified after the statement of claim has been admitted (the Plenum leaves this possibility open).
To minimise the risk of procedural errors when submitting foreign-origin documents, it is advisable to follow this checklist:
The amendments to Uzbekistan's legislation, which introduced the concept of "Abuse of Law" into the Tax Code, are currently causing many questions and ambiguous interpretations. In accordance with Article 14 of the Tax Code of Uzbekistan: if a taxpayer performs operations or a series of operations, the sole or primary purpose of which is to obtain an unjustified tax benefit in the form of non-payment or reduction of taxes owed, such actions are considered an abuse of rights for the purposes of this Code.
"Never say that you know a person if you have not divided an inheritance with them" (Johann Kaspar Lavater, Swiss writer, poet, and philosopher). Time has accelerated its pace: years pass by like days, and days fly by so quickly that you hardly notice them. Everything around us is changing rapidly, but the human desire to live in happiness and prosperity has remained unchanged throughout the centuries. Confidence in the future, the belief that what has been earned and accumulated will “serve” children, and possibly grandchildren, is also an understandable human desire. What opportunities does the law provide for the realization of all of the above? Naturally, we are talking about inheritance law. In Uzbekistan, expressing one's will by leaving orders regarding one's property in case of death is not as popular as, for example, in European countries. Perhaps, the reason lies in the traditional patriarchal way of life, habitual for the people, where the word of a man - the head of the family - has supreme power and does not require legal formalization.
