The defenders registered internet domain names. The claimants alleged an intended infringement of their trade marks, saying the defenders had a history of opening sites intended to deceive. The defenders who were resident in Greece said that the 1982 Act could not be used for a threatened delict, but only for a completed one. Held: … Continue reading Bonnier Media Limited v Smith and Kestrel Trading Corporation: SCS 1 Jul 2002
The claimant brought proceedings in Switzerland (a party to the Lugano Convention) against the defendant who was domiciled in England, alleging that he had conspired with one of the claimant’s employees to misappropriate some US$ 21 million. It was conceded that there was a good arguable case against Mr Cuoghi, which would have justified worldwide … Continue reading Credit Suisse Fides Trust SA v Cuoghi; Credit Suisse Fides Trust SA and Amhurst Brown Colombotti (a Firm): CA 11 Jun 1997
The contractors appealed a decision that an arbitrator had jurisdiction to hear a claim against them in respect of works carried out on the Thelwall viaduct. The contractors denied that there had been a dispute which could found a reference, and no valid engineer’s decision within the time limit provided. Held: The court must avoid … Continue reading Amec Civil Engineering Ltd v Secretary of State for Transport: CA 17 Mar 2005
World-wide freezing orders had been made under the 1982 Act. The defendants were members of a Turkish family with substantial business interests in the telecommunications industry. In breach of orders made in the US some defendants had sought to hide their assets. They had failed to respond as required to orders to disclose their assest, … Continue reading Motorola Credit Corporation v Uzan and others (No 2): CA 12 Jun 2003
The deceased had died in an accident whilst filming in Spain for the defendants. The plaintiff personal representatives sought damages here, while the defendants denied that the court had jurisdiction under the 1968 Convention, and said that the death actually occurred as a consequence of the negligence of his medical treatment in Spain. Judges: Phillips … Continue reading Kinnear and Others v Falconfilms Nv and Others: QBD 27 Jan 1994
Acting on guidance, the parties representatives and the tribunal had assumed that part of the award relating to loss of future earnings would not be taxable. The question now was whether the tribunal had power of its own motion to review its decision. Held: ‘There is a difference between saying that a case to which … Continue reading Williams v Ferrosan Ltd: EAT 5 Mar 2004
Presumption in Favour of Open Proceedings There had been an unauthorised dissemination by the petitioner to third parties of the official shorthand writer’s notes of a nullity suit which had been heard in camera. An application was made for a committal for contempt. Held: The House equated the contempt to a breach of an injunction … Continue reading Scott v Scott: HL 5 May 1913
The defendant’s company in South Africa had become insolvent and the claimant had recovered judgment for arrears of rent. They obtained a freezing order against the defendant. The defendant appealed saying the court did not have jurisdiction, and should have taken account of cross claims. The defendant argued that the order was sought on a … Continue reading John Louis Carter Fourie v Allan Le Roux and others: CA 7 Mar 2005
The plaintiff had been injured in an accident and had sued and recovered damages for his injuries in France. Later, his condition deteriorated. In France he would have been able to revive his action to claim further damages, but he sought a similar right from an English Court, claiming a right to do so under … Continue reading Henderson v Jaouen and Another: CA 1 Feb 2002
Permission was sought to use alternative service to serve proceedings on a company. There was no exceptional difficulty in ordinary service, but the claimant wanted to ensure that a claim was heard within the UK jurisdiction, and expected that he would have to serve the proceedings by surprise in order to prevent them first issuing … Continue reading Knauf UK GmbH v British Gypsum Ltd and Another: CA 24 Oct 2001
A petitioner for a decree of nullity of an English marriage in the English courts on the grounds of lack of consent to the marriage, having failed to obtain such decree, obtained a declaration from the Belgian court that the English marriage, was void ab initio on the ground that the marriage was merely a … Continue reading Vervaeke v Smith: HL 1983
Interim asset freezing injunctions had been obtained on the application of a liquidator in South Africa. The defendant applied for their discharge. Held: They should be discharged. No foreign proceedings had been specified for which they were proposed as support. An insolvency process was insufficient for this purpose. The court had forewarned the plaintiff of … Continue reading Fourie v Le Roux and Others: ChD 30 Sep 2004
Acquisition of Habitual Residence Habitual residence can in principle be lost and another habitual residence acquired on the same day. Held: The provisions giving the courts of a member state jurisdiction also apply where there is an alternative jurisdiction in a non-member state such as the United States. The Regulation also deals with how child … Continue reading A v A and another (Children) (Children: Habitual Residence) (Reunite International Child Abduction Centre intervening): SC 9 Sep 2013
The defendants, young boys, had set fire to paper and thrown the lit papers into a wheelie bin, expecting the fire to go out. In fact substantial damage was caused. The House was asked whether a conviction was proper under the section where the defendant had given no thought to a risk of damage, but … Continue reading Regina v G and R: HL 16 Oct 2003
Arbitration jurisdiction applications stayed The claimant sought declaratory relief as to the basis of a purchase after he placed a bid for a blockchain-based non-fungible token (also known as an NFT) associated with an artwork by the artist known as Beeple titled ‘Abundance’. The court was now asked to decide was whether the English court … Continue reading Soleymani v Nifty Gateway Llc: ComC 24 Mar 2022
A Scottish court has no jurisdiction to act in a Scottish bankruptcy case could not act to retrieve property assigned without consideration to an English company with no connection to Scotland other than the gift. Citations: Times 14-Oct-1998 Statutes: Civil Jurisdiction and Judgments Act 1982 Sch 8 Citing: See also – Re Thoars (Dec’d); Reid … Continue reading Reid v Ramlort Ltd: IHCS 14 Oct 1998
The appellant, liquidator of two South African companies, had made a successful without notice application for an asset freezing order. He believed that the defendants had stripped the companies of substantial assets. The order was set aside for want of jurisdiction, because it had not been ancillary to any proceedings which had even been formulated … Continue reading Fourie v Le Roux and others: HL 24 Jan 2007
The appeal concerned a final third party debt order (formerly a garnishee order). A judgment in France was registered here for enforcement. That jurisdiction was now challenged. Held: A third party debt order is a proprietary remedy operating by attachment against the property of the judgment debtor. The property so attached is the chose in … Continue reading Societe Eram Shipping Company Limited and others v Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp Ltd, Compagnie Internationale de Navigation: HL 12 Jun 2003
AMT entered into many financial services agreements providing for exclusive EW jurisdiction. It now sought to restrain the defendant German lawyers from encouraging litigation in Germany saying that induced breaches of the contracts. It also sought as damages the costs incurred in the German litigation. The defendant asserted lack of jurisdiction saying that the alleged … Continue reading AMT Futures Ltd v Marzillier and Others: SC 1 Mar 2017
The applicant was a solicitor employed by a company in Belgium. He later resigned claiming unfair dismissal, saying he had been pressed to become involved in unlawful activities. The defendants sought to challenge the jurisdiction of the English Tribunal system. The defendants had begun procedures in Spain for conciliation. The claimant had obtained an injunction … Continue reading Turner v Grovit and others: HL 13 Dec 2001
Shareholder May Sue for Additional Personal Losses A company brought a claim of negligence against its solicitors, and, after that claim was settled, the company’s owner brought a separate claim in respect of the same subject-matter. Held: It need not be an abuse of the court for a shareholder to seek damages against advisers to … Continue reading Johnson v Gore Wood and Co: HL 14 Dec 2000
Mr Qabazard conspired with others to defraud the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company SAK and Sitka Shipping Inc of large sums of money. On 16 November 1998 Moore-Bick J gave judgment against him for over US$130m. Historically sums had been placed with the defendant, and garnishee orders were sought. Held: It is not correct to characterise … Continue reading Kuwait Oil Tanker Company SAK and others v UBS AG, Qabazard: HL 12 Jun 2003
Restitution when Contract Void ab initio A claim for restitution of money paid under a contract which was void ab initio is not a claim in contract, nor tort, nor delict, it was justiciable only in the court of domicile. The Brussels Convention does not decide jurisdiction. ‘But it is clearly recognised that article 5 … Continue reading Kleinwort Benson Limited v City of Glasgow District Council: HL 19 Jun 1997
A claim was issued in London in December 2004, and then served in part in Switzerland in January 2005. One copy was removed from the bundle by a Swiss official, seeing that it had been marked ‘Nor for service out of the jurisdiction.’ That marking had been in error. After proceedings were then issued in … Continue reading Nussberger and Another v Phillips and Another (No 4): CA 19 May 2006
The claimant appealed a finding that the court did not have jurisdiction over income payable to a trust governed by English law under which the claimant was beneficiary. Held: The appeal failed in part. Because Article 5 is in derogation from the basic principle of domicile in Article 2, the provisions of Article 5 are … Continue reading Gomez and others v Vives: CA 3 Oct 2008
The claimant conservatory installers claimed wrongful repudiation of the contract by the defendant householders. The defendants, living in Ayrshire, said that the English courts had no jurisdiction over the contract. Held: The court gave its reasons for accepting the defendants’ submission. The mere fact that Oak Leaf’s primary focus in advertising is on England did … Continue reading Oak Leaf Conservatories Ltd v Weir and Another: TCC 24 Oct 2013
The respondent had issued bonds but in 2001 had declared a moratorium on paying them. The appellant hedge fund later bought the bonds, heavily discounted. Judgment was obtained in New York, which the appellants now sought to enforce against assets in the UK. They argued that the terms of issue waived state immunity. Held: The … Continue reading NML Capital Ltd v Argentina: SC 6 Jul 2011
ECJ 1. Article 18 of the convention of 27 September 1968 on Jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters applies even where the parties have by agreement designated a court which is to have jurisdiction within the meaning of article 17 of that convention. 2. Article 18 of the Convention of … Continue reading Elefanten Schuh Gmbh v Pierre Jacqmain: ECJ 24 Jun 1981
There had been a consent order in the terms of an unless order giving the landlord an order for possession unless the tenant paid sums by a certain date, time being of the essence. The order was not complied with and the tenant applied for a . .
Two obligations in a charterparty which had not been fulfilled, namely the obligation to nominate a vessel, to be the subject matter thereof, and the obligation to provide it.
Held: The former was the principal obligation. Lord Goff said: . .
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