Judicial Assistance Sweden
SERVICE OF PROCESS
Civil Cases:
a) Personal Service: Sweden is a party, as is the United States, to The Hague Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil and Commercial Matters , 28 USCA (Appendix following Rule 4 FRCVP); VII Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory , Part VII (Selected International Conventions) at 1-8.; 20 UST 361; TIAS No. 6638 (hereafter referred to as "the Convention").
Pursuant to the Convention, personal service may be obtained by sending a completed "Request and Summary" (See Martindale-Hubbell , above at pages 6 and 8 for the appropriate forms), with the documents to be served, directly to the Swedish Central Authority:
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The forms may also be obtained from any U.S. Marshal''s office. Ask for Memorandum No. 386, Revision 3.
Footnote 12 following the text of the Convention in Martindale-Hubbell is the Swedish declaration. One of the Swedish reservations therein states that the documents to be served must be accompanied by a Swedish translation. The "Request and Summary" themselves need not be translated into Swedish.
Although the above procedure is available, it need not be used. Any private person may serve process in Sweden. An agent or a Swedish attorney could also be hired to do so. However, in civil cases, American consular officers cannot serve process.
b) Service by Mail: Sweden has no objection to service of process by mail from abroad. Information regarding the sending of registered mail into Sweden from the United States may be obtained from any U.S. Post Office.
Criminal Cases:
a) Personal Service: The Hague Convention does not apply to criminal cases. Therefore, in order to obtain personal service, it is necessary to prepare a letter rogatory, as described in 4 Moore''s Federal Practice 28.05. As stated in Moore''s , the letter rogatory should be sent through diplomatic channels, in duplicate. The letter and documents should be translated into Swedish unless it is known that translations will not be required in a particular case. In the letter rogatory it is important to specifically request that the documents be served personally; otherwise it is unlikely that this will occur.
The letter rogatory and documents to be served should be sent to:
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Sweden does not object to American consular officers serving subpoenas on American citizens in Sweden. However, American consular officers, by regulation, may serve subpoenas only on American citizens and only if the subpoenas emanate from a federal court. If this form of assistance is desired, the subpoena should be sent to American Citizens Services at the above address indicated in the preceding paragraph.
b) Service by Mail: Sweden does not object in criminal cases to service by mail from the U.S. However, in criminal cases, Swedish law only considers service to have been effective if received specifically by the person to be served.
OBTAINING EVIDENCE
Civil Cases:
a) Voluntary Witness: Sweden and the United States are parties to The Hague Convention on the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters , 28 USCA 1781 (1977 Supp.); VII Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory , Part VII (1983) at 11-20. As a result of Sweden''s accession to the Convention, American attorneys may take voluntary depositions in Sweden whenever and wherever they choose if they obtain permission from the Swedish Foreign Ministry. In order to obtain permission from the Foreign Ministry send an informal request to the American Embassy in Stockholm. See section D. for address. The request should summarize the cause of action and indicate that an American is a party to the suit. This procedure is not available unless an American citizen is a party to the suit.
If desired, a deposition may be taken in the Embassy. American consular officers are empowered both to administer oaths for depositions and to administer interrogatories. See 22 USC 4215, as amended and 22 CFR 92.58. When depositions are taken by a consular officer, it is Department policy to allow American or locally hired attorneys to participate fully. Be sure to check with the embassy for the correct fee for consular assistance in the taking of depositions. See Item 69, 22 CFR 22.1. Allow a minimum of four weeks prior to the taking of the deposition if one of the above-described forms of consular assistance is needed.
Swedish authorities will also take a deposition of a willing witness pursuant to the terms of the Hague Convention.
b) Involuntary Witness: If a witness must be compelled to appear and testify in Sweden his deposition can only be taken by Swedish authorities. A request and the questions to be posed to the witness must be sent directly to the Swedish Central Authority. See A.1.a for the address. The appropriate request form may be found following the text of the Convention in Martindale-Hubbell . A form may be obtained from any U.S. Marshal''s office. Ask for Memorandum No. 386, Revision 3.
Criminal and Tax Cases:
Whether witnesses are American or non-American, voluntary or involuntary, only a Swedish court may take evidence from them in criminal or tax cases. This is because the Hague Evidence Convention does not apply to criminal or tax cases under Swedish law.
In order to obtain evidence in Sweden in criminal and tax cases, send a letter rogatory and the questions to be posed in duplicate to American Citizen Services. For the address, see A.2.a. An explanation can be found in 4 Moore''s Federal Practice 28.05. American Citizens Services will send the letter rogatory and questions through diplomatic channels and, ultimately, they will reach the appropriate Swedish court. However, one should allow at least three or four months before return may be expected.
ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGMENTS
There is no treaty, convention, or other international agreement in force between Sweden and the United States regarding enforcement of judgments. Expedited enforcement of American judgments may not be available. There is a subsection discussing enforcement of judgments in the Swedish law section of volume VII of Martindale-Hubbell (1983). Another discussion can be found in No. 13, American-Swedish Private International Law (Columbia University 1965) at page 69.
AMERICAN POST IN SWEDEN
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OTHER TREATIES, CONVENTIONS AND AGREEMENTS
- Consular Convention , 37 Stat 1479; TS557; 11 Bevans 730 (1911)
- Convention on Extradition , 14 UST 1845; TIAS 5496; 949 UNTS 141 (1963)
- Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Leglization For Foreign Public Documents , 33 UST 883; TIAS 10072; 527 UNTS 189, [Signed and ratified Convention March 2, 1999; Entered into Force: May 1, 1999.]
