Owusu v Jackson, Mammee Bay Resorts Limited etc: CA 19 Jun 2002

Defendants appealed against an order refusing an order to restrain service of the proceedings on certain defendants outwith the jurisdiction. The claimant was seriously injured holidaying at a resort managed by the several defendants in Jamaica in various ways. The defendants argued that the proper forum was Jamaica.
Held: The decision as to forum conveniens was well within the judge’s discretion. As to the issues of European Law, these were to be referred to the European Court. Here, the two competing jurisdictions were not separate European ones, but one European and one Jamaican. The issue had not been previously dealt with by the European Court.

Judges:

Lord Justice Brooke

Citations:

[2002] EWCA Civ 877, [2003] PIQR 186

Links:

Bailii

Statutes:

Civil Procedure Rules 6.20(3), Brussels Convention Art 2, EC Treaty 220

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedMassey v Haynes 1881
Where one party to a case resides out of the jurisdiction, then Order 11 r1(1) applies and he may be joined if there are several defendants and the result would depend upon one investigation involving all of them. The words ‘proper party’ includes . .
CitedGroup Josi Reinsurance Company Sa v Universal General Insurance Company ECJ 9-Aug-2000
The Brussels Convention rules allowing jurisdiction apply whenever the proposed defendant is domiciled in a convention country. The plaintiff need not be. The special rules on jurisdiction which apply to insurance cases do not apply to reinsurance . .

Cited by:

Reference fromOwusu v Jackson ECJ 1-Mar-2005
ECJ Brussels Convention – Territorial scope of the Brussels Convention – Article 2 – Jurisdiction – Accident which occurred in a non – Contracting State – Personal injury – Action brought in a Contracting State . .
CitedA v A and another (Children) (Children: Habitual Residence) (Reunite International Child Abduction Centre intervening) SC 9-Sep-2013
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 . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

European, Jurisdiction, Civil Procedure Rules

Updated: 09 September 2022; Ref: scu.174009