Miles & Stockbridge Files Amicus Brief In Support Of Moroccan Judgment

RICHMOND, Va., Feb. 4, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Miles & Stockbridge, a leading business law firm in the mid-Atlantic region, announced today that it has filed an amicus curiae brief before the United States Supreme Court in support of the petition for certiorari by Maghreb Petroleum Exploration, S.A., and Mideast Fund for Morocco Limited.

The brief addresses the Fifth Circuit's opinion in DeJoria v. Maghreb Petroleum Exploration, S.A., 935 F.3d 381 (2019), refusing to recognize a foreign judgment in an American court, and argues that the reluctance of American courts to enforce foreign judgments undermines America's promotion of the rule of law abroad. The full text of the filed brief can be found here.

"The Fifth Circuit's opinion in DeJoria v. Maghreb Petroleum Exploration, S.A. reflects poorly on American justice," said Thomas M. Wolf, a principal and trial lawyer in the Richmond office of Miles & Stockbridge. "If allowed to stand, the opinion announces to the world that, with enough money and influence, an American judgment debtor can change the law retroactively and avoid having to pay a huge overseas judgment."

The brief was written by Wolf and Joseph M. Rainsbury, also of the firm's Richmond office.

Background

The Fifth Circuit case involved an attempt by Moroccan investors to domesticate a judgment obtained against Texas multi-billionaire John Paul DeJoria, an entrepreneur and co-founder of Paul Mitchell hair products and The Patrón Spirits Company.

Investors claimed that DeJoria had defrauded them in an ill-fated project to develop oil reserves in Morocco. Although properly served, DeJoria declined to participate in the Morocco proceedings. The Morocco court heard evidence on damages and entered a $123 million judgment against DeJoria. DeJoria then used his resources and influence to lobby the Texas Legislature to retroactively change the law relevant to the case.

Brief Overview

Wolf and Rainsbury addressed the following in the brief:

• The lawsuit filed by DeJoria in the Western District of Texas, which found that the Moroccan judgment against DeJoria had not been rendered under a system with procedures compatible with due process.
• The Fifth Circuit's initial reversal on appeal, finding that the district court had erred when it concluded that Morocco's judicial system did not adhere to standards of due process.
• DeJoria's persuading of the Texas Legislature to change the statute to fit his case, retroactively, even though the Texas Constitution forbids retroactive legislation.
• How the Fifth Circuit, hearing the case a second time, allowed DeJoria to take advantage of the changed statute and avoid having to pay the judgment.
• How the rulings of the Western District of Texas and the Fifth Circuit enabled DeJoria to transmute certain defeat into an improbable victory.
• Why this case is a gift to any country looking for an excuse not to reform its own judicial system or not to enforce an American judgment.

Reasons for Certiorari

Wolf and Rainsbury argue in the brief that the Fifth Circuit should grant certiorari for three reasons:

• To prevent the harm to international business that the ruling will cause, if left uncorrected,
• To restore consistency in the federal courts' handling of foreign-judgment-recognition cases, and
• To correct the injustice that has been done to the petitioner.

About Miles & Stockbridge

Miles & Stockbridge is a leading law firm with more than 220 lawyers and seven offices in Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Virginia. The firm's lawyers help global, national, local and emerging business clients preserve and create value by helping them solve their most challenging problems. For more information, please follow Miles & Stockbridge on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

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