In October Fountain Court members Stephen Rubin QC and Philip Brook Smith QC will be acting for the Estate of Anders Jahre in possibly the final round of what is believed to be one of the longest-running cases in legal history – the Re Jahre litigation.
This litigation which had its origins in proceedings in 1941 concerns the Norwegian shipping tycoon Anders Jahre and the question of whether he owned the valuable bearer shares of a Panamanian shipping company – a fact he always denied.
In 1941, when an oil tanker owned by the Panamanian company was seized by the Allies, the State of Norway embarked on an attempt to prove that Jahre was the owner. Since then the dispute has dragged on without any final conclusion and has involved numerous litigation proceedings in England (House of Lords), the Cayman Islands and Norway during which the Estate has succeeded in obtaining awards and settlements approaching USD 100 million. The case has reached the House of Lords, the Privy Council and the Norwegian Supreme Court.
The latest proceedings in the Cayman Islands which were commenced in 2004 concern attempts by the Jahre estate to recover assets allegedly belonging to Jahre. The Estate represented by Stephen Rubin QC succeeded at a preliminary trial in 2006.
Over the years many leading English silks have been involved in the various proceeding involved in this long-running litigation including current and former Fountain Court members such as Anthony Boswood QC and former Attorney General Lord Goldsmith.
