Halki Shipping Corporation v Sopex Oils Ltd
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judge | Hirst,Henry,Swinton Thomas L JJ |
| Judgment Date | 19 December 1998 |
| Court | Court of Appeal (Civil Division) |
| Date | 19 December 1998 |
Court of Appeal
Before Lord Justice Hirst, Lord Justice Henry and Lord Justice Swinton Thomas
Arbitration - whether dispute within arbitration clause - defendant entitled to stay of court proceedings
A defendant who was a party to an arbitration agreement was entitled to a stay of court proceedings unless the court was satisfied that the action was not brought in respect of the matter referred to arbitration or was brought under an agreement which was null and void, inoperative or incapable of being performed.
The Court of Appeal so held by a majority, Lord Justice Hirst dissenting, dismissing an appeal by the plaintiffs, Halki Shipping Corporation, against a decision of Mr Justice Clarke (The Times October 13, 1997; [1997] TLR 506; [1997] 1 WLR 1268) granting an application by the defendants, Sopex Oils Ltd, for a stay of the plaintiffs' action for US$498,852.43 in respect of demurrage claimed as a result of failure to load and discharge the vessel Halki within the laytime provided in a tanker voyage charterparty dated June 20, 1995.
The charterparty provided for arbitration. The plaintiffs had issued a summons under Order 14 of the Rules of the Supreme Court for judgment for the amount claimed in the action.
Section 9 of the Arbitration Act 1996 provides: "(1) A party to an arbitration agreement against whom legal proceedings are brought (whether by way of claim or counterclaim) in respect of a matter which under the agreement is to be referred to arbitration may (upon notice to the other parties to the proceedings) apply to the court in which the proceedings have been brought to stay the proceedings so far as they concern that matter…
"(4) On an application under this section the court shall grant a stay unless satisfied that the arbitration agreement is null and void, inoperative, or incapable of being performed."
Mr Nicholas Hamblen, QC, for the plaintiffs; Mr Richard Waller for the defendants.
LORD JUSTICE HENRY said the plaintiffs, the shipowners, wished to apply under Order 14 for summary judgment against the defendants in respect of their demurrage claim.
The defendants, the charterers, had successfully applied to Mr Justice Clarke to stay those proceedings on the basis that there was an arbitration agreement and that the legal proceedings were brought in respect of a matter which under the agreement was to be referred to arbitration.
The court had to...
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