MARITIME LAW |
Practice |
Ed Wahl Boat Builders and Repairs Ltd. v. Norse-Pol (The)
T-627-00
Hargrave P.
28/8/00
6 pp.
Motion for release from arrest of Norse-Pol without bail, security for costs--Norse-Pol, partially constructed yacht, arrested by builder who alleged money owed on construction--Owners alleging already paid in excess of contract price; to remedy defects, complete construction will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars--Plaintiff abandoned rental shipyard facility with rent owing--Registered office changed from solicitors' office to plaintiff's landlord's place of business, although latter having no other connection to plaintiff than as creditor--Plaintiff's counsel removed herself from record--Thus neither opposing counsel with whom defendants' counsel might deal, nor any effective way of reaching plaintiff--Given extraordinary, summary nature of arrest procedure, incumbent on plaintiff to be available on short notice, yet no entity behind arrest with whom to deal--Under Federal Court Rules, 1998, r. 488, Court having jurisdiction to release ship--To maintain arrest in absence of live plaintiff with whom to negotiate release would be perverse, contrary to reasonable rights of shipowners--Motion allowed--Plaintiff required to provide security for costs, within set time to provide defendants way of bringing proceeding to end, in absence of plaintiff capable of pursuing action--Federal Court Rules, 1998, SOR/98-106, r. 488.