British Arab Commercial Bank plc v The National Transitional Council of the State of Libya [2011] EWHC 2274
Queen’s Bench Division, Commercial Court, Blair J, 26 Aug 2011
A bank was granted a declaration that it was entitled to act on instructions from the National Transitional Council of the State of Libya and not the former Qadhafi regime.
Andrew Fletcher QC (instructed by Stephenson Harwood) for the bank. Richard Perkoff (instructed by Clyde & Co LLP) for NTC. David Perry QC and Christopher Staker (instructed by Treasury Solicitors) for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
The proceedings concerned the control of accounts of the Libyan Embassy in London held with the claimant bank. On 27 July 2011 the defendant (NTC) was recognised by Her Majesty’s Government as the “sole governmental authority in Libya”. Prior to that date the recognised government of Libya was that of Muammar Muhammad al-Qadhafi. The embassy was a long standing client of the bank.
From the money in the accounts the embassy
