British Arab Commercial Bank Plc and others v Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi and Brothers Company and others [2011] EWHC 2444 (Comm), [2011] All ER (D) 147 (Sep)
The claimant bank applied for interim charging orders over various properties in which the defendants appeared to have a beneficial interest, and the interest that the defendants had was to be the subject of a later trial. Shortly afterwards, interim charging orders were obtained by the opposing banks over the same property. The bank applied for a final charging order over the properties. The opposing banks resisted that application, on the ground that it would give the bank an advantage against them. Although the charging orders would not be made final until the relationship of the defendants to the property had been determined, the court invited argument as to whether the bank would be entitled to priority over the opposing banks if the order were made final.
It went on to rule that the general rule, in non-statutory insolvency regime cases, was that the principle of “first past the post” applied.
