Willers v Joyce & Anor (Re: Gubay (deceased) No 1)

Factual and Procedural Background

This excerpt contains no narrative of the underlying facts or the procedural steps below, other than that it is an appeal to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom from a 2015 decision of the High Court.

Legal Issues Presented

1. Whether an action at common law lies for the malicious arrest of a ship through Admiralty process when the arrest is undertaken without reasonable or probable cause.

Arguments of the Parties

The opinion does not contain a detailed account of the parties' legal arguments.

Table of Precedents Cited

Court's Reasoning and Analysis

The Court observes that, although there is no direct precedent “in the books” for an action at common law arising from the malicious arrest of a ship, historical authority places the burden on those who would deny such a cause of action. Drawing on Lord Campbell’s statement in Churchill v Siggers, the Court reasons that wrongful use of legal process coupled with resulting loss forms the foundation of an action on the case. The Court sees no principled basis for exempting Admiralty proceedings from this general rule.

By analogy to Hocking v Matthews, where malicious prosecution under ecclesiastical process was actionable, the Court notes that the same logic applies to wrongful arrest of property rather than persons. The Privy Council’s language in The Evangelismos—endorsing damages where mala fides or crassa negligentia is shown—treats the existence of such an action as beyond doubt, a view later affirmed in The Strathnaver.

Holding and Implications

The holding was not included in the provided excerpt, so the Court’s ultimate decision and its immediate implications for the parties cannot be stated.