A contract in English enforceable

William Cancroft said:

My understanding is that the Courts/Law does not recognize any contract that was executed in English in the D.R. ,however I have been recently informed that the said English contact can be translated into Spanish and then enforced/recognized by the courts.

Can anyone share their knowledge and/or understanding of same.?

Click to expand...

Depends on many factors!

Where was the contract made.
What for.
Was it legal binding.
Was it between two people/entities of which at least one party was a Dominican national/citizen/resident/entity.
Etc...

All in all the DR is one of the few countries which DOESN'T have a ban on legal documents or any kind with language restrictions for their legal standing.

You need to consult with a local Lawyer to tell you what applies in your particular case!

Some contracts have a clause stating that if translated the original version should prevail in the event of any ambiguity or difference in interpretation.

VERY difficult question. In fact, I'm following this closely because I was married (in DR) to a Dominican, and divorced (in Canada). Now the DR lawyer says our certificate is null here and we must re-divorce...and the lawyer wants me to tell a bunch of lies.

Get a VERY GOOD lawyer (can you speak to Guzman on this forum?) before making any expenses toward this...and good luck

In principle, contracts in any language are valid under Dominican law, the only requirements for a binding contract being: (a) the consent of the parties; (b) their capacity to contract; (c) a lawful object of contract; and (d) a lawful cause (article 1108 of the Civil Code).

Some contracts, however, are subject to additional requirements: "formal" contracts (donations, for example) must be written up by a notary; others, such as real estate deeds of sale must be written in Spanish and have the signatures of the parties authenticated by a notary.

For a definite answer on your particular case, consult a lawyer.