BVI Court of Appeal - Injunction Procedure

Richard G. Evans, Mark J. Forté • Posted 24/10/2009 • Under Articles

CONYERS LEADS SUCCESSFUL BVI COURT OF APPEAL CASE CONCERNING INJUNCTION PROCEDURE

On 28 September 2009, the Court of Appeal in the BVI handed down a judgment of general importance in the context of appellate practice.

The ruling arose in the context of the long running Danone litigation (Danone Asia Pte v. Golden Dynasty Enterprise Ltd et al) and concerns the longstanding confusion in the ECSC (the umbrella judicial system of which BVI is a part) as to when leave to appeal is required in relation to injunction/receivership orders. The applicable statutory provisions (contained in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (Virgin Islands) Act) provide that leave to appeal a first instance decision is required in respect of all interlocutory orders, save those specified. Amongst the exempted list of orders is an order "where an injunction or the appointment of a receiver is granted or refused". Such orders are relatively common in BVI commercial practice.