KING'S BENCH DIVISION
COMMERCIAL COURT
Fetter Lane, London, EC4A 1NL |
||
B e f o r e :
____________________
Palmali Shipping SA |
Claimant |
|
- and - |
||
Litasco SA |
Defendant |
____________________
Craig Morrison KC and Geoffrey Kuehne (instructed by Hogan Lovells) for the Defendant
Hearing dates: 3rd May 2024
____________________
Crown Copyright ©
Mr Justice Jacobs
"We have not written to Hogan Lovells or to the Court. It would be a mistake to do so. Were we to make such an approach at this time we would risk coming under immediate pressure to fix new dates and we would expose Palmali to the risk that the Court may make an order. For the time being we should say nothing. First of all we must concentrate on getting to grips with the details in the case in order that we may make recommendations to Palmali that will enable Palmali to take informed decisions"
"We have not yet responded to Hogan Lovells. We should defer sending a response until we have been able to review the London Legal database and to understand what it holds and whether the required further disclosure is on the database."
"On an application for relief from any sanctions imposed for a failure to comply with any rule, practice direction, or court order, the court will consider all the circumstances of the case so as to enable it to deal justly with the application, including the need –
(a) for litigation to be conducted efficiently and at proportionate cost; and
(b) to enforce compliance with rules, practice directions, and orders."
"A judge should address an application for relief from sanctions in three stages. The first stage is to identify and assess the seriousness and significance of the "failure to comply with any rule, practice direction, or court order" which engages rule 3.9 (1). If the breach is neither serious nor significant, the court is unlikely to need to spend much time on the second and third stages. The second stage is to consider why the default occurred. The third stage is to evaluate "all the circumstances of the case, so as to enable the court to deal justly with the application, including [factors (a) and (b)]."