Norwegian bank gets another chance at DIFC Courts in $8.7m suit against Gulf Navigation

The approval to appeal comes after a July ruling in a case brought by DNB last year against Gulf Navigation.

The Norwegian bank DNB will be allowed a second chance in the DIFC Courts to pursue the enforcement by the Dubai Courts of a UK court decision against the UAE shipper Gulf Navigation, worth nearly US$9 million, after obtaining approval to appeal an earlier ruling.

The approval to appeal, published on the DIFC Court’s website yesterday, comes after a July ruling in a case brought by DNB last year against Gulf Navigation, in which the bank sought the recognition and enforcement in the DIFC Courts of an English High Court judgment.

In his judgment handed down in July, Justice Ali Al Madhani recognised the High Court judgment, dismissing arguments from Gulf Navigation that the DIFC Court had no jurisdiction to hear the case and that it should be held in private.

But Justice Al Madhani also ruled that the court only had jurisdiction to recognise and enforce the High Court judgment within the DIFC itself, and that the court could not refer the judgment to the Dubai Courts.

DNB now hopes to that a favourable decision on appeal could then lead to to the onshore enforcement of the claim against the shipping company’s assets.

This follows a memorandum of understanding signed in 2011 allowing for the mutual enforcement of each other’s judgments.

The High Court judgment, issued last September, required that Gulf Navigation and two associated companies pay DNB $8.7m plus costs following Gulf Navigation’s defaulting on loan agreements from July 2013.

In addition to granting DNB leave to appeal the judgment, the justice, Richard Field, also allowed Gulf Navigation to appeal against the ruling that the company be liable for costs emanating from its applications to have the case dismissed.

This is not the first time that DNB has targeted Gulf Navigation assets.

After the original default on loan payments in July 2013, the bank ordered the seizure of the operator's Gulf Sheba tanker in Rotterdam in September of that year.

The vessel was eventually sold in January last year.

DNB and Gulf Navigation did not respond to requests for comment.​

Gulf Navigation remains in breach of specified covenants with its lenders, with its liabilities reaching Dh641.8 million at the end of June, the company said last month.

The company has admitted that such factors “indicate the existence of a material uncertainty, which may cast significant doubt about the ability of the group to continue as a going concern”, even as it achieved a profit of Dh5.11 m in the second quarter.

Gulf Navigation shares yesterday closed down 4 per cent at 38 fils in Dubai.

Follow The National's Business section on Twitter