Sze Ming Yeung v Jeckz Investment Ltd & Ors
[2024] EWCA Civ 1413
Sub 20 Ltd v Royalton Investment Limited & Ors
22 March 2024
[2024] EWHC 907 (Comm)
High Court
A company lent a lot of money and wasn't repaid. They sued the borrowers and guarantors. The borrowers didn't show up to court. The judge ruled in favor of the company because the borrowers' reasons for not paying were not valid. The company got all their money back.
Key Facts
- •Sub 20 Ltd (Claimant) sought summary judgment against Royalton Investment Ltd and four other defendants (Defendants) for an unpaid loan of $26,768,000.
- •The loan was guaranteed by the other defendants, including James Gurassimos Frangi.
- •The Defendants did not appear in court.
- •The loan agreement included provisions for interest, fees, and legal costs.
- •A sale of a yacht, part of the security, yielded significantly less than expected.
- •Defendants raised various arguments, mainly concerning business proposals rejected by the Claimant and claims of the Claimant's wrongdoing
Legal Principles
Summary judgment is granted if there is no realistic prospect of success for the defence.
Easyair Ltd v Opal Telecom Ltd [2009] EWHC 339 (Ch) at [15]
When a defendant does not participate in summary judgment proceedings, the claimant has a duty to present the application fairly, drawing attention to potential arguments the defendant might have raised.
Hirbodan Management Company & Anor v Cummins Power Generation Limited [2021] EWHC 3315 (Comm) at para.15
A mortgagee owes no duty to its borrower as to when or how it exercises its security rights.
This case establishes this principle through the court's analysis of the lender's actions concerning the sale of the yacht.
Outcomes
Summary judgment granted to the Claimant for the full amount claimed.
The court found no realistic prospect of a successful defence. The Defendants' arguments were deemed without merit.