430 EXCHEQUER COURT OF CANADA [1950 1950 British Columbia Admiralty District June 12 June 24 BETWEEN : SHERMAN ET AL, (PLAINTIFF) (RESPONDENT) AND THE SHIP GOOD HOPE II, 1 DEFENDANT f (APPELLANT) . Shipping—Collision,—Appeal from assessment of damages—Claim for salvage disallowed. Held: That a claim for salvage not supported by evidence that such was a reasonable disbursement must be disallowed. APPEAL from assessment of damages. The appeal was heard before the Honourable Mr. Justice Sidney Smith, District Judge in Admiralty for the British Columbia Admiralty District, at Vancouver. John I. Bird for plaintiff-respondent. Roy Ginn for defendant-appellant. The facts and questions of law raised are stated in the reasons for judgment. SIDNEY SMITH, D.J.A. now (June 24, 195Q) delivered the following judgment: This is an appeal from the learned Deputy Registrar's assessment of damages sustained by the plaintiffs on account of the sinking of their vessel Paul D following collision with the Good Hope iII.. The first point made is that the valuation of Paul D was excessive. I am inclined to think the Vancouver witnesses' figures were "out of line", as expressed by one of the defendant's experts, and were too high. But the figures were sworn to, the Registrar accepted them on ample evidence, and I am not prepared to say that he was wrong. The second point raises different considerations. The plaintiff testified that Dale & Co. (the insurers of the Paul D) sent a tug out to try and salvage the vessel.
Ex.C.R.] EXCHEQUER COURT OF CANADA Nothing came of it. A bill for $1,000 from the tug-owners was presented for the effort, and this item was allowed by the Registrar. There is no evidence that this was a EA L reasonable disbursement; no foundation was laid for the claim; for all that appears on the record the whole thing may have been a wild-goose chase from the start. More- Syd over, as defendant's counsel put it, it may have been merely a speculation of the insurers for their own benefit; and so not recoverable. Cf. The M.S. Tex (1). The appeal will therefore be allowed on this head. The assessment should be reduced by $1,000; otherwise it will stand. The appellant is entitled to his costs. Judgment accordingly. 431 1950 SHERMAN THE Srn Goon HOPE II m n i e th y D..JA. —
You are being directed to the most recent version of the statute which may not be the version considered at the time of the judgment.