The St Tudno [Prize Court]
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judgment Date | 28 July 1916 |
| Date | 28 July 1916 |
| Court | Prize Court |
Prize Court
Sir S. T. Evans, President
The St. Tudno
Daimler Company v. Continental Tyre and Rubber Company (Great Britain) Limited 114 L. T. Rep. 1049 (1916) 2 A. C. 307
The ChileDID=ASPMELR 12 Asp. Mar. Law Cas. 598 112 L. T. Rep. 248 (1914) P. 212
Merchant Shipping Act 1894 (57 & 58 Vict., c. 60), s 1.
Prize Court — British ship — Registration
516 MARITIME LAW CASES. Prize Ct] The St. Tudno. [Prize Ct. July 26 and 28.1916. (Before Sir S. T. Evans. President.) The St. Tudno (a) Prize Court-British ship-liegi$lralion-Real ownership-Enemy corporation-Control of British company by enemy corporation-Seizure of ship a prize-Seizure in British port-Condumnation or detention-Merchant 8flipping Act 1894 (57&58 vict. 60),s 1. In ascertaining wkelher a veeiel is or it not enemy proptrty, the Prize C'jurt mutt contider the whole of the eircumst tncm connected with itt reyittrativn, manngemitnt, and employment. If, iherejore, a vet"el Jlytng the Britith fiig it reyiitertd in the name uf a British company, vihich company is bound to an aiien, enemy cor' poration in tuck a manner at to thow that the (a) Reported by J.A. Slaters, Esq., Barrister-at-Law. MARITIME LAW CASES. 517 Prize Ct.] The St. Tudno. [Prize Ct. ownership of the British company it limply nominal, whilst that of the enemy corporation it real, the vessel will be treated as enemy property, and either condemned or ordered to be detained in the tame manner any other enemy vessel. The T. was a steamship, registered at a British ship, and nominally owned by a britiah com-pnnrf; but in reality the Britiih company wai under an agreement entirely conti oiled by a German corporation, which, appointed the directors and found their qualification tharei, owned the entire shaie capital oj the company in the perion of itt nomineet, gave all inttruclimt at to the working of the company, and received the whole of thepri'fUt earned by the vetiel. For tome time ajttr ttie outbreak of war the vetiel was u$ed by the Admiralty, but was eventually leii'd at prize at Sothampton. Held, that under the whole ctrcumttansei of the ante, the T. teas really ouniei by the German corporation, and not by the Britith company in whose name she was rtgittered, and mutt there-fore be held to be a Oerman veiiil; but that, as she wat in port at Southampton at the outbreak of war, the order to be made against her wat one cf detention, under the Sixth Convention of the Hague Conference 1907, and not of condemnation. THIS was a snit in nbich the Crown claimed the ooudeoiDation as prize of the St. Tadno, on the ground thut at the time of capture and eeizMre she belonged to the euemies of the Crown, or, sltertiativel, to a cooipaDy oontrolled by euemiea of ihe Crown. The St. Tudno was a steel paddle steamer of 754 tons register, and was built at Glasgow in 18ifl. She was originally the property of the Liverpool and North Wales Stenmsbip Company Limited, but on the 17th Sept. 1912 she was par-cbatted by a Mr, Tamplin Irom the original owners on iMtbalf of the Hamburg-Amertlia Linie for 19,500/. Acting further ou ihe inutrnotiona of the Hamburg Amenka Linie, Mr Tudno trans, feried tb3 St. Tudno to the Maolrer Steamship Company Limited by a bill of tiale, d"ted the Ist Got. 1912. The bill of sale was duly registered. At the same time an agreement was entered iot.o between the Ilambarg' Amerika Linie and the Maolver Steamship Company Limited, by which the former obtained complete control over the latter, and in accordance with the terms of which all dividends earned in connection with the St. Tudno bad to be accounted for to the German company. From Oct. 1912 until the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914 the vessel was used ae a tender at Soutbacopton to the ships of the Hambnrg-Amerika Lmie, to wbom she was char-tmed at 83ul a month. On the 21st Sept. 1914 the St. Tudno was reqaieitioned by the Admiralty, and from time to time paymentti were made, without prfjudioe, to the Maclver Steamship Company Limited in reBpect of the working exptfueet) ot ttie veusti. On the 24th Dec. 1915 the veiitiel was st-izdd, and a writ was issued on the 3rd Jan. 1916 claiming the vesttel as prize. Tue?? was resisted by the Maclver Steamship Company Limited. In au affidavit filed by Mr. Robert Morrell Greenwood, of the Treasury Stilioitor'u tffi.-e, it was stated that the number of shareii tiiken up and held by existing members of the Maclver Sceahiehip Company Limited oo the 24th Dec, 191.5, the date of the seizure of the St. Tudno, was 2500, and of these 2250 were held by the Dirdotion der Disbonco GesellHchaft, an enemy company. The position of the Mtulcer Steamship Campany Limited, the nominal owners of the St. Tudno, was set out in the follO'ving letter, addressed by Messrs. Pritchard and Sons to the Director of Transports on the Ship Oct 1914, wbicb letter was made an exhibit to the affidavit : We have been instructed by the Maclver Steamship Company Limited, and by Mr Tamplm, respectively the owners and registered maDager of the St. Tudno, wbtoh has been reqniaitioned by the Government ani is now being employed by the Admiralty in S atbampton Water and the S ilent, to by before ;oa the folloringp facts as to the oonstitation of the Maclver Company and the onnnrstaip of the steamship St. Tudno. The st. Tudno is owned by; the Maclver Steamship Company Limited, an Euglisa oompan; registered in Englind in aooordanoa nith tbo English Companies Act. The St. Tudno therefore is oleariy a Britiuh ship and entitled to fly the Britisb flig and to be regiacerad, as she is regi-tered, as a Bricisb ship. Sbe is under charter to the Hambnrg-Amerika Linie The Maclver bceiimsbip Company Limited, which was registered as far back as the Ccb Jone 1891, foand it impoaeiblo to raise saffioient money for the purpoaet of the company.and the company never before 1911 allotted more than eeven shares, or, in fact, did any busineas. The memorandam of association was signed by aareii signatoties, who were all British, and nbo thereby became bound to take one...
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