Gautam Adani U.S. indictment: How are summons issued under the Hague Convention? Premium

SEC seeks Indian government's help to serve Adani summons in securities fraud case under Hague Service Convention.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) informed a New York court on February 18, 2025, that it has sought assistance from the Indian government under the Hague Service Convention—formally known as the Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters, 1965—to serve summons on billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani in a securities and wire fraud case. The Adanis were recently charged by the U.S. Department of Justice and the SEC in criminal and civil cases for allegedly bribing Indian government officials over $250 million to advance the Adani Group’s solar projects.

The SEC informed the court that it had invoked Article 5(a) of the Convention to request India’s Ministry of Law and Justice to facilitate the service of summons on the defendants. It further stated that it is exploring alternative service methods permitted under Rule 4(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which governs civil litigation in U.S. federal courts.

On February 10, 2025, the Trump administration paused enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)—one of the laws under which the Adanis have been charged—for 180 days. The FCPA prohibits U.S. entities and individuals from bribing foreign governments, political parties, or officials to secure business.

As per the executive order, the attorney general must review “all existing FCPA investigations or enforcement actions” and take steps “to restore proper bounds on FCPA enforcement”. However, the SEC’s latest court filing suggests that the order does not apply retroactively. As a result, the Agency’s investigation into the Adanis is likely to continue unless the law is amended.

Following his visit to Washington last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told journalists that his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump did not include discussions on the Adani case, as it was a “personal matter”.

With the rise in cross-border litigation, the need for an effective and reliable mechanism to serve judicial and extrajudicial documents on parties residing in foreign jurisdictions became imperative. As a result, countries adopted the Convention at the Hague Conference on Private International Law in 1965. Building on the 1905 and 1954 Hague Conventions on Civil Procedure, this multilateral treaty ensures that defendants sued in foreign jurisdictions receive timely and actual notice of legal proceedings while also facilitating proof of service.

Eighty four states, including India and the U.S., are parties to the Convention. Its procedures apply only when both the sending and receiving countries are signatories. Each member state must also designate a central authority to process requests and facilitate the service of documents from other signatory states.