[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 22, Volume 1]

[Revised as of April 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 22CFR92.54]



[Page 373]

 

                       TITLE 22--FOREIGN RELATIONS

 

                     CHAPTER I--DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 

PART 92_NOTARIAL AND RELATED SERVICES--Table of Contents

 

Sec.  92.54  ``Letters rogatory'' defined.



    In its broader sense in international practice, the term letters 

rogatory denotes a formal request from a court in which an action is 

pending, to a foreign court to perform some judicial act. Examples are 

requests for the taking of evidence, the serving of a summons, subpoena, 

or other legal notice, or the execution of a civil judgment. In United 

States usage, letters rogatory have been commonly utilized only for the 

purpose of obtaining evidence. Requests rest entirely upon the comity of 

courts toward each other, and customarily embody a promise of 

reciprocity. The legal sufficiency of documents executed in foreign 

countries for use in judicial proceedings in the United States, and the 

validity of the execution, are matters for determination by the 

competent judicial authorities of the American jurisdiction where the 

proceedings are held, subject to the applicable laws of that 

jurisdiction. See Sec.  92.66 for procedures in the use of letters 

rogatory requesting the taking of depositions in foreign jurisdictions.