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British Virgin Islands: Carey Olsen Acts For Successful Appellants In Important 'Forum Non Conveniens' BVI Court Of Appeal Decision
Offshore law firm Carey Olsen has acted for successful
appellants in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) Court of Appeal,
which has overturned the first instance decision of the BVI High
Court (Commercial Division), in connection with claims alleging
multimillion-dollar fraud purportedly involving a number of
companies in the BVI. Carey Olsen's clients successfully argued
that Russia was the appropriate forum for the hearing of the
dispute.
The appeal concerned claims brought in the BVI by JSC MCC
Eurochem, a company incorporated in Russia, and its Swiss affiliate
(together "Eurochem"). Eurochem alleged that certain
senior members of its sales team had set up a web of companies in
the BVI, Panama, Cyprus and Scotland for the sole purpose of
receiving, concealing and laundering the proceeds of over US$45
million in secret commission payments from Eurochem's trading
partners.
Eurochem issued proceedings in the BVI against the (now former)
members of the sales team, the alleged bribe payers and the
companies who were alleged to have received bribes. A number of the
defendants applied to get those proceedings struck out or stayed on
the basis that BVI was not the appropriate forum to hear the
dispute. That argument was rejected at first instance.
However, in its judgment of September 2018, the Court of Appeal
reversed the first instance decision and found that the Courts of
the Russian Federation are the more appropriate forum to hear the
proceedings.
Partner Ben Mays, head of Carey Olsen's litigation and
insolvency team in the BVI, said: "In its judgment, the Court
of Appeal has provided a useful and timely clarification of the
rules governing forum and jurisdiction challenges and reiterated
that that the mere existence of a BVI incorporated company as a
respondent to a claim which, as the Court of Appeal puts it,
otherwise 'has nothing to do with this jurisdiction' is
not, in itself, a determining factor of whether the BVI Court will
accept jurisdiction."
Carey Olsen has one of the largest dispute resolution and
insolvency practices in the offshore legal field led by 17 partners
across nine international offices.
Mr Mays and senior associate Andrew Chissick acted for six of
the appellants in the proceedings, instructing Stephen Moverley
Smith QC of XXIV Old Buildings.
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