Précis: The Quebec Small Claims Court refused to give effect to a jurisdiction clause in passenger ferry ticket in favour of the Federal Court.
Full SummaryHitachi Maxco Ltd v. Dolphin Logistics Co., 2010 FC 853
This was a motion by the defendants for a stay of proceedings. The main issue was whether an admiralty action instituted in Canada in personam by two foreign corporations against four foreign corporations for the loss of cargo shipped from one foreign port and intended for discharge and delivery in another foreign jurisdiction should be stayed in favour of the …
Full SummaryNicolazzo v. Princess Cruises, 2009 CanLII 28217
The plaintiffs in this matter had booked a cruise with the defendant through the plaintiff’s travel agent in Hamilton, Ontario. They embarked in Italy and disembarked in England. During the cruise $5,000 was stolen from the safe in the plaintiffs’ stateroom. The plaintiffs commenced this action to recover the stolen money. The defendant brought a motion to dismiss the claim …
Full SummaryMitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. v. Mazda Canada Inc., 2008 FCA 219, 2008 CanLII 63491
The Cougar Ace took on a list of 60 degrees while en route to Canada and the U.S.A. from Japan. As a consequence, a large number of automobiles destined for Canada and U.S.A. were damaged. All of the automobiles were subject to a contract of carriage that contained a jurisdiction clause in favour of Japan and a choice of law …
Full SummaryOT Africa Line Ltd. v. Magic Sportswear Corp., 2006 FCA 284
This was a subrogated action by cargo insurers for damages for the short shipment of goods carried from New York to Liberia under a bill of lading that was issued in Canada. The freight was also payable in Canada and the Defendant carrier, although not a Canadian resident, had offices in Canada. None of the Plaintiffs resided in Canada. The …
Full SummarySumisho Reftech Co. Ltd. v. The "Great Pride", 2006 FC 388
This was an application to stay proceedings. The underlying matter concerned a contract for the carriage of goods from China to Japan and the parties to that contract were not Canadian residents. The only basis for bringing the action in Canada was that the Defendant COSCO had a Canadian office and the existence of this Canadian subsidiary gave the court …
Full SummaryFord Aquitaine Industries SAS et al. v. The "Canmar Pride" et al., 2005 FC 431
This action concerned the loss of or damage to several containers carried from LeHavre to Montreal. The damages were estimated at $6 million. The carriage was pursuant to a transportation services agreement which provided for American law and jurisdiction. The carrier under the transportation services agreement was OOCL but OOCL was expressly permitted to subcontract the carriage, which it did, …
Full SummaryZ.I. Pompey Industrie v. ECU-Line N.V., 2003 SCC 27
The Plaintiffs claimed that cargo carried from Belgium to Canada and then on to the US was damaged. The Appellant shipowner sought to rely on an exclusive jurisdiction clause in the bill of lading referring claims to the Courts of Belgium. The matter arose before s.46(1) of the Marine Liability Act came into force. The Prothonotary refused to uphold the …
Full SummaryNestle Canada Inc. v. The "Viljandi" et al., 2003 FCT 28
This was an an application for a stay of proceedings on the basis of a jurisdiction clause contained in a bill of lading. The Court refused the stay on the grounds that the action had been commenced after the Marine Liability Act was proclaimed in force (August 8, 2001) and, therefore, the matter was covered by s. 46(1) of the …
Full SummaryFriesen v. Norwegian Cruise Lines et al., 2003 BCSC 256
This was an application by the Defendant to stay proceedings commenced in British Columbia on the grounds of a jurisdiction clause contained in the passenger ticket. The Plaintiff, a British Columbia resident, was injured on an Alaskan cruise ship which had departed from the port of Vancouver. The Plaintiff argued that the matter was governed by the Athens Convention; Article …
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