Review: The subject of this research is the international legal acts in the area of acceptance and execution of decisions rendered by foreign courts, current procedural legislation of the Republic of Bulgaria, as well as research publications on this topic. The object of this research is the legal foundation and procedural actions in acceptance and execution of foreign court decisions on civil and commercial issues in the Republic of Bulgaria. The author carefully examines the rules directly related to execution and refusal to execute a court decision rendered in a member-state on the territory of Bulgaria. Special attention is given to the multiple issues pertaining to implementation of EU regulations recently passed in the area of EU civil process. Analysis of the positions dedicated to direct execution and refusal to execute a court decision is conducted in the context of the position of Brussels I Bis Regulation. The author makes following conclusions and recommendations: Bulgarian legislator needs to eliminate the difference between obligation to execute a foreign court decision and domestic court decision; it is necessary to amend the Civil Procedure Code of Bulgaria, as well as clarify the process of refusal to execute in accordance with the Article 47 of the Brussels I Bis Regulation. The author’s contribution into the research of this topic consists in the recommendation on improvements to the legal regulation and passing equal conditions for execution of foreign and national court decisions within the framework of the EU.

Keywords: exequatur, special proceedings, member states, declaration of fulfillment, recognition, civil procedure, European Union, Regulations, cross-border cases, foreign court decision

Review: This article examines the image of the Arctic Region as a large geopolitical actor with clear division of the zone of political influence of modern countries. The article reviews the negative aspects of lobbying for the interests of separate countries, which impact situation in the region, as well as negative consequences substantiated by the absence of standardized international legislative regulation of security regime and presence of external actors in the region. Within the framework of this study, the authors carried out a legal and economic analysis of the current geopolitical situation, as well as existing aspects of normative regulation of this branch in the region, as well as concluded on the possibility of joint development of the bottom of the Arctic shelf and realization of projects in the sphere of natural resource management of the Arctic Region. The scientific novelty consists in a brief, but in-depth substantiation of typical characteristics of the current system of international relations, as well as in the complex analysis of significance of the Arctic region on the agenda of world politics, and determination of “Arctic policy” as a separate vector in strategy of the leading countries of the world. The authors consider legal characteristics and existing approaches towards determination of legal status of the Arctic territories, which vary in different political-legal traditions. United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982 is the framework document that serves as the basis of national justification of claims in the Arctic Region. The main conclusion consists in the description of the existing conflict of laws, which can be overcome successfully only in terms of mutual, joint, fruitful cooperation of the key political actors that are involved or have political aspirations in the Arctic Region.

Keywords: the international cooperation, status of arctic territories, legal regime, Arctic nature management, international relations, shelf exploration, Arctic region, Arctic, geopolitical potential of the region, Convention Sea Law