Caselaw Digest
Caselaw Digest

Ceto Shipping Corporation v Savory Shipping Inc

15 March 2024
[2024] EWHC 663 (Comm)
High Court
Two companies had a contract saying all disagreements would be settled in a UK court. One company sued the other in Singapore anyway. The UK court stopped the Singapore case, saying the company broke the contract by suing in Singapore. The UK court ordered the company to stop the case in Singapore.

Key Facts

  • •Ceto Shipping Corporation (Claimant) commenced proceedings in Singapore against Savory Shipping Inc (Defendant).
  • •Previous proceedings between the parties in the English High Court (CL-2022-000277) involved the same ship, mv Victor 1, and contracts containing exclusive jurisdiction clauses for the English courts.
  • •Ceto's Singapore claim sought determination of issues already being litigated in London, including entitlement to sale proceeds of the ship.
  • •Savory applied for an interim anti-suit injunction to restrain Ceto's Singapore proceedings.
  • •Ceto offered to stay the Singapore proceedings conditionally, contingent on the withdrawal of Savory's application.

Legal Principles

Breach of contract and vexatious litigation.

Contractual exclusive jurisdiction clauses and the inherent jurisdiction of the court to prevent abuse of process.

Anti-suit injunctions.

The court's power to grant anti-suit injunctions to protect its jurisdiction and prevent forum shopping.

Outcomes

Savory's application for an interim anti-suit injunction was granted.

Ceto's pursuit of the Singapore claim was a breach of contract, vexatious, and threatened to subvert the English proceedings. Ceto's conditional offer to stay the proceedings was deemed insufficient.

Ceto was ordered to consent to Savory's stay application in Singapore within seven days.

To ensure the integrity of the exclusive jurisdiction agreement and the priority of the English proceedings.

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