Allowed

Sakuma Exports Ltd. v. Louis Dreyfus Commodities Suisse S.A.

Bombay HC12 Dec 2014APP/702/2014

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

In an appeal against an order allowing enforcement of a partial final arbitral award, the High Court set aside the impugned order on the condition that the appellant deposits the rupee equivalent of the awarded costs with the Court. The matter for enforcement was remanded to be heard afresh.

What did the court decide?

The appeal allowed; the impugned order setting aside the enforcement order stands set aside subject to deposit of the cost amount by the appellant.

Sakuma Exports Ltd. Vs Louis Dreyfus Commodities Suisse S.A. — Arbitration | Bombay HC (2014)

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APP 702-2014

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION

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APPEAL NO. 702 OF 2014 IN

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ARBITRATION PETITION NO. 1435 OF 2010

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Sakuma Exports Ltd. .. Appellant V/s Louis Dreyfus Commodities Suisse S.A. .. Respondent

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Mr. Gaurav Joshi, Senior Advocate with Mr. Chirag Mody and Mr. Ashish Pyasi i/b Krishnamurthy & Co. for the appellant. Mr. Hiroo Advani with Mr. Asif Lampwala and Mr. Deepak Lad i/b Advani & Co. for the respondent.

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CORAM: MOHIT S. SHAH, C.J. & B.P. COLABAWALLA, J.

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DATE : 12 DECEMBER 2014

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P.C.:

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This appeal is directed against the order dated 28 November 2014 of the learned Single Judge allowing enforcement of the partial final award dated 15 September 2010 by which the Arbitral Tribunal had directed the appellant to pay the sum of £13,850 as costs exclusive of Value Added Tax. The learned Single Judge has granted the following prayers of Arbitration Petition No. 1435 of 2010:-

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“(a) For an order that the Foreign Award dated 15^th September 2010 (Final Partial Arbitration Award on jurisdiction being Exhibit-A hereto) be deemed to be a decree of this Hon'ble Court and a direction to enforce and execute the said Award as decree in favour of the petitioner and as against the respondent;

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(b) For a direction to the respondent to produce on oath a complete inventory of its assets and properties including amongst others:

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(i) Immovable properties owned by the respondent in its possession and in the possession of any third parties;

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(ii) Movable properties owned by the respondent in its possession and in the possession of any third parties;

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(iii) Shares, debentures, bonds, securities etc. held by the respondent in any company/entity;

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(iv) All debts due and payable to the respondent by any third party(ies);

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(v) Details of bank accounts which the respondent holds;

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(vi) Details of stock in trade and raw material of the respondent;

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(vii) Details of cash in hand with the respondent;

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(c) For a direction to realize the total amount awarded to the petitioner under Final Partial Arbitration Award on jurisdiction dated 15^th September 2010,

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(i) By attachment and sale of the respondent's immovable property;

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(ii) By attachment and sale of the respondent's movable property;

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(iii) By attachment and sale of all shares, debentures, bonds, securities etc. held by the respondent company in any other company/entity/concern;

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(iv) By attachment of all debts due and payable to the respondent and directions to the garnishee thereof to deposit all such debts in this Hon'ble Court and the amounts awarded to the petitioner under the Award;

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(v) By attachment of all bank accounts held by the respondent;

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(vi) By attachment and sale of stock in trade of the respondent;

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(vii) By attachment of cash in hand with the respondent.”

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The learned Single Judge has noted that the Final Award had been directed to be enforced by an order passed by the learned Single Judge on the same day and that the petition for enforcement

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of the Final Award was allowed. By an order passed today in Appeal No. 701 of 2014, we have set aside that order with liberty to the respondent to file an application under section 47 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (the Act) for enforcement of the Foreign Award. We have remanded the matter back to the learned Single Judge for hearing the execution application along with the application for enforcement of the Foreign Award.

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As far as the present appeal is concerned, we are of the view that the interests of justice would be served if the appellant is directed to deposit within 4 weeks from today the rupee equivalent of the costs of £13,850 awarded by the Arbitral Tribunal under the Partial Final Award dated 15 September 2010, with the Prothonotary & Senior Master of this Court. Upon deposit of the amount, the impugned order dated 28 November 2014 shall stand set aside and the application for enforcement of the Partial Final Award dated 15 September 2010 under section 47 of the Act shall be heard afresh. Upon deposit of the amount, the Prothonotary & Senior Master shall invest the same with a nationalized bank for a period of 6 months with cumulative interest. The amount deposited along with the interest accrued thereon, if any, shall abide by the outcome of the application under section 47 of the Act for enforcement of the Partial Final Award dated 15 September 2010.

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It is clarified that we have not gone into the merits of the contentions of the parties and this order is passed without prejudice to the rights and contentions of the parties.

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The appeal is accordingly allowed in the aforesaid terms.

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CHIEF JUSTICE

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(B.P. COLABAWALLA, J.)

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Sakuma Exports Ltd. v. Louis Dreyfus Commodities Suisse S.A.

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Sakuma Exports Ltd. v. Louis Dreyfus Commodities Suisse S.A.

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

What the court decided

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Sakuma Exports Ltd. Vs Louis Dreyfus Commodities Suisse S. a.