Comity

The principle by which the courts of one country recognise and give effect to the laws, judicial decisions, and legal institutions of another country, not as a matter of legal obligation but out of mutual respect and the desire for harmonious international relations. Comity underlies much of private international law.

In practice

Comity is the foundational principle behind the enforcement of foreign judgements at common law in England and Wales. Where no statutory route exists, a foreign judgement can be enforced by commencing fresh proceedings and relying on the foreign judgement as creating an obligation that the debtor must satisfy. The English court will recognise the foreign judgement out of comity, subject to defences such as fraud, natural justice, and public policy.