Arbitration—Appeal—Fresh evidence

Queen’s Bench Division, Commercial Court, Males J, 16 Jul 2014

The court does not have an unfettered discretion to exclude relevant evidence on an application under s 67 of the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996), nor is the only ground upon which it may do so is that the admission of new evidence would cause prejudice to the other side.

Ben Olbourne (instructed by Grier Olubi Solicitors) for the claimant. Robert Bright QC and Charles Holroyd (instructed by Jackson Parton Solicitors) for the defendant.

The claimant had a claim for loss and damage to a cargo of bagged rice carried from Thailand to Nigeria pursuant to five bills of lading on board the defendant’s vessel. The bills were subject to English law, and each contained a London arbitration clause. The claimant claimed that it had become the holder of the bills, and that rights of suit were transferred to it