The owner of the Ever Given that got stuck in the Suez Canal for a week, is expected to receive several legal claims.
As Bloomberg reports, the scale of future litigation against the vessel’s owners was laid bare at a London court hearing. There, lawyers won a court order to put any potential claims on hold for two months.
In addition, two subsidiaries of the Shoei Kisen Kaisha obtained an order limiting some claims against the vessel to 84 million pounds ($116 million).
As Stewart Buckingham, the Ever Given vessel’s owner’s court lawyer, explains, it is expected that more claims will be filed by individual cargo ship owners. This stay in proceedings will enable related and overlapping claims to be grouped.
Mr. Buckingham also adds that tThe position of the ship is that it was not liable for the grounding incident or any of its consequences.
In fact, when the ship got stuck, it was being led by a Suez Canal pilot, who was driving the ship from the Suez anchorage into the canal, the lawyer claimed.
The owners also highlight that there were no injuries or deaths, nor any pollution by the incident, except for minor damages to the vessel’s bow.
Now, any claims filed in the UK will take years before reaching an outcome, however, arbitration may resolve some cases, in order to prevent lengthy and expensive court battles.
After leaving the Suez Canal, the Ever Given arrived at Port Said, where it anchored at the port’s outer limits. The ship had inspections at the port.
