Fratelli Damiano (Italy) v. August Topfer & Co. (Germany)

August Topfer & Co. (Topfer) (plaintiff) and Fratelli Damiano (Damiano) (defendant) entered into a sales contract for sugar. The contract included an arbitration clause, under which all disputes would be referred to arbitration and arbitration would be conducted by the Arbitration Board of the Refined Sugar Association, London (the association). A dispute arose and was arbitrated in England by the association. An arbitral award containing no reasoning or explanation was rendered in favor of Topfer. Topfer filed to enforce the award at the Messina Court of Appeal. The request for enforcement was initially granted but was later reversed on appeal to the Italy Supreme Court and denied on remand to another Italian court of appeal. While the Italian case was pending, Topfer initiated proceedings in the England and Wales High Court of Justice, seeking a judgment that the arbitral award was enforceable. Before the final denial of Topfer’s request for enforcement in Italy, the high court issued a judgment confirming the enforceability of the award. The next year, Topfer filed to enforce the judgment of the English high court in Italy at the Messina Court of Appeal. The court of appeal did not examine the contents of the high court decision but granted enforcement on the ground that because the decision was a court judgment, it was automatically enforceable in Italy. Damiano appealed the court of appeal’s grant of enforcement to the Italy Supreme Court.