A French partnership did not carry on business within the UK. It was sued in its firm name in respect of a contract signed in the name of the firm. The evidence of French law did not establish that the French partnership was a totally separate legal entity from the individual partners in it, although it was a legal person for the purpose of service of legal proceedings upon it.
Held: The Court upheld the judge’s order setting aside the writ which named the firm as the defendant on the ground that Ord 48A did not apply and that the writ was not properly issued naming the firm as a defendant.
Phillimore LJ: ‘According to our modern practice there are three classes who can sue, or appear to writs, – persons, corporations, and firms. The introduction of partnerships is comparatively modern and since the Judicature Act, but the fact is merely for convenience of nomenclature and of service; the results are in the end the same as if the individuals composing them sued or were sued by their individual names. It is clear from the case of Dobson v Festi, Rasini and Co (1) that some similar procedure now obtains in Italy, and it appears from this case that some similar procedure now exists in France. That may well be, but our law, being very careful how it interferes with the rights of foreigners, has not allowed service to be effected upon individuals who are engaged in a foreign partnership by serving the partnership as in England. The foreign partners cannot be sued by their firm name, and there is nothing to enable service upon some manager carrying on business for the partners or service on one as service on the rest.’
and ‘They are not enough for this purpose; they are not enough to shew – which is necessary for this purpose – that a societe en nom collectif is like a corporation in this respect, not merely that it has a separate persona, but that it has a separate ownership of property and separate liability from the ownership or liability by or of the persons composing the aggregation. I can conceive certain cases of bodies of which one might be doubtful whether they were corporations or not; and upon a writ properly framed alleging that the body sued was a separate entity, and making it clear that no relief was sought against any individual opposing that entity any more than it would be against shareholders in a corporation, I can conceive it being possible to suggest that such a body might be treated as a corporation and might be sued and served as a corporation. But this is on the face of it apparently a partnership, and the affidavit of service of the writ plainly and boldly describes it as a partnership. The rules of English law provide that our ancient process in respect of English people should remain in respect of foreigners.’
Judges:
Buckley Phillimore LJJ
Citations:
[1914] 1 Ch 748
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Company, Litigation Practice
Updated: 30 May 2022; Ref: scu.183335