Legal Question in Business Law in California

I see your question as coming down to the issue of the overall enforcement of the agreement. This would start with ensuring that you have a proper contract with the company from India. The straightforward answer to your question is that International Laws do protect such contractual arrangements. One of the provisions that I would include in the agreement is an Arbitration provision or a similar provision regarding Mediation with possible venue in the State of California. This may very well discourage a breach of the agreement by compelling the breaching party from a foreign country to incur the costs associated with you having to enforce the agreement. Arbitration and mediation are less expensive enforcement provisions than other options such as a Trial in a foreign jurisdiction. I do have experience with one case that involved the Supreme Court of India and it literally took years to resolve. So, as I said, nothing is guaranteed and there are risks, just that you need a proper well-drafted agreement from the beginning.

There are a variety of contractual protections that can be included in your agreement with the overseas company, including provisions for arbitration, jurisdiction in the U.S., etc. You need to keep in mind, however, that unless they have an actual presence in the U.S. and assets here against which a judgment could be enforced, even if you could sue in the U.S. it would do no good if you had nothing against which to enforce a judgment. From my limited experience, litigation in India can be very time consuming and costly, and takes years to resolve. If you are truly concerned about these issues, you might want to look for a partner in the U.S.