Stuart Lunn v Antarctic Logistics Centre International (Pty) Limited
| Court | King's Bench Division |
| Judge | GERAINT WEBB KC |
| Neutral Citation | [2024] EWHC 1662 (KB) |
| Date | 28 June 2024 |
| Year | 2024 |
| Counsel | Christopher Loxton,Sarah Crowther Kc |
Neutral Citation Number: [2024] EWHC 1662 (KB)
Case No: QB-2021-000470
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE
KING'S BENCH DIVISION
Royal Courts of Justice
Strand, London, WC2A 2LL
Date: 28/06/2024
Before:
GERAINT WEBB KC
Sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Between :
STUART LUNN
Claimant
- and -
ANTARCTIC LOGISTICS CENTRE
INTERNATIONAL (PTY) LIMITED
(A company registered in the Republic of South
Africa)
Defendant
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Christopher Loxton (instructed by Fieldfisher LLP) for the Claimant
Sarah Crowther KC (instructed by Hunters Law LLP) for the Defendant
Hearing date: 29 April 2024
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
JUDGMENT
Introduction
1. This judgment concerns the Defendant’s application pursuant to Part 11 of the
Civil Procedure Rules challenging the jurisdiction of the courts of England and
Wales to determine the claim for personal injuries brought by the Claimant, Mr
Stuart Lunn.
2. The claim concerns injuries sustained by Mr Lunn on 12 February 2018 whilst
working as a self-employed aircraft engineer for a Malta-based company called
Jet Magic Limited (“Jet Magic”). At the time of the accident he was in the
process of carrying out checks on a Boeing 757 aircraft (“the B757”) operated by
Jet Magic, which was stationary on the blue ice airstrip of the Novolazarevskaya
Air Base, also known as the Novo Air Base, Schirmacher Oasis, Queen Maud
Land, Antarctica, (“the Novo Airstrip”). According to the Particulars of Claim,
Mr Lunn is a British citizen and was resident in the UK at the material time.
Lunn v Antarctic Logistics [2024] EWHC 1662 (KB)
Draft 1 July 2024 14:38 Page 2
3. The Defendant, Antarctic Logistics Centre International (Pty) Limited, is a
company incorporated under the law of South Africa. At the material time it was
the occupier and operator of the Novo Airstrip pursuant to an agreement with the
Russian Federation. The Defendant chartered the B757 aircraft to transport
scientists and workers to and from research stations in Antarctica.
4. Mr Lunn claims that he stepped from the B757 onto a set of mobile stairs next to
the aircraft and that then the stairs started to move on the ice as a result of the
thrust of the jet engines from an I1-76 Ilyushin aircraft (“the Ilyushin aircraft”)
which was taxiing directly in front. The stairs toppled over, causing Mr Lunn to
fall to the ice suffering personal injury. In summary, the central allegation is that
the Defendant was negligent in failing to manage the air traffic control on the
Novo Airstrip so as to ensure that the taxiing Ilyushin aircraft was kept a safe
distance from the B757 aircraft in circumstances in which there was a foreseeable
risk of injury, including in respect of the use of the mobile stairs, if the Ilyushin
aircraft was not kept at a safe distance.
5. Following the accident Mr Lunn was flown to a hospital in Cape Town, South
Africa, where he remained for 5 weeks until he was transferred to a hospital in
the UK for a further two weeks before being discharged to the care of his elderly
mother in the UK.
6. The Defendant seeks to set aside the Order of Master Thornett dated 29 July 2021
permitting the Claimant to serve proceedings on the Defendant in South Africa
and seeks a declaration that the court has no jurisdiction to try the claim or
alternatively that it should not exercise any jurisdiction which it may have to try
to the claim.
Procedural history
7. The Claim Form was issued on 10 February 2021 and originally named five
Defendants, including Jet Magic and two entities domiciled in Russia and
associated with the Ilyushin aircraft; the Claimant has elected to proceed against
the Defendant alone.
8. On 15 July 2021 the Claimant issued a without notice application for permission
to serve the Claim Form out of the jurisdiction on the Defendant and sought an
extension of time for service of the Claim Form. The application for permission
to serve out was made under the jurisdictional gateway provided by CPR PD 6B
para 3.1(9) on the basis that damage was sustained, or will be sustained, within
the jurisdiction. The application was supported by a witness statement of Keith
Barrett of Fieldfisher LLP, the Claimant’s solicitors.
9. By an Order dated 29 July 2021, sealed on 3rd August 2021, Master Thornett gave
permission for the Claim Form to be served on the Defendant at its address in
Cape Town, South Africa and for time for service to be extended to 29 January
2023.
10. The Claim Form and Particulars of Claim were served on the Defendant in South
Africa on 24 August 2022. The Defendant acknowledged service on 1 February
Get this document and AI-powered insights with a free trial of vLex and Vincent AI
Get Started for FreeStart Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
Start Your Free Trial of vLex and Vincent AI, Your Precision-Engineered Legal Assistant
-
Access comprehensive legal content with no limitations across vLex's unparalleled global legal database
-
Build stronger arguments with verified citations and CERT citator that tracks case history and precedential strength
-
Transform your legal research from hours to minutes with Vincent AI's intelligent search and analysis capabilities
-
Elevate your practice by focusing your expertise where it matters most while Vincent handles the heavy lifting
