Consignments of cargo (such as fruit juice) carried on the MAG Victory from the United Arab Emirates to Iraq went overboard resulting in a claim of USD 850,000 for cargo loss and cargo damage. The cargo claimant initiated proceedings on 21 February 2013 against the defendant shipowner in tort and bailment; unseaworthiness at the start of the voyage was also alleged. (The position of the second defendant carrier was not clarified.) This was before the Hague-Visby Rules time bar as extended to mid-March. However, the particulars of claim were not served until 25 July, two days late of the procedural deadline. The claimants applied for an extension of two days to serve their particulars of claim. Counsel for the defendants opposed the extension and relied, amongst others, on the one-year time bar in the Hague-Visby Rules.

Held

For the purposes of the Hague-Visby Rules time bar the pertinent fact was that the suit had been brought before the extended deadline. The fact that extension of time had to be sought for pursuing the particulars of claim did not change this.