San Leon awarded €16m damages after Canadian asset firm fail to submit defence

High Court Reporter

San Leon, the Dublin-headquartered gas and oil exploration firm, has been awarded damages in the region of €16 million by the High Court, after a Canadian asset management firm sued by San Leon over reneging on an investment agreement failed to defend the lawsuit.

San Leon plc brought the action against Tri Ri Asset Management Corp (Tram) last March, accusing the Toronto-based firm of failing to follow through on a deal to swap 419,000 shares in US technology firm Palantir for a 10 per cent shareholding stake in San Leon.

San Leon, with offices on Crampton Avenue, Dublin 4, also sued father and son Shan Ahmad Ali and Asad Ali, director and chief investment officer of Tram respectively, and both with addresses in Toronto.

The Tram defendants failed to enter a defence to the lawsuit. Last month, the High Court granted judgment to San Leon in default of defence against the Tram defendants.

If a litigant does not enter a defence to a High Court action, the suing party can apply for judgment in default of defence, and bypass the need for a full trial of the action.

This week, senior counsel Gary McCarthy, appearing for San Leon with barrister Declan Harmon, and instructed by Turners solicitors, opened before Judge Oisín Quinn evidence of losses sustained by San Leon on account of the Tram defendants’ wrongdoing. The Tram defendants were not represented.

The judge assessed the appropriate damages to be awarded to San Leon against Tram at $18,171,500 (€15,687,092).

The judge reached this figure by taking the value of 419,000 Palantir shares due to be transferred to San Leon at the time of the deal, and deducting the value of a 10 per cent stake in San Leon to be transferred to Tram.

The judge also added 2 per cent interest to the damages figure.

San Leon brought the case against Tram alleging breach of contract, and, against Shan Ahmad Ali and Asad Ali, conspiracy and intimidation, among other alleged wrongs.

The Tram defendants initially indicated they would contest San Leon’s case, and instructed Arthur Cox to act for them. Solicitors acting for Tram filed papers challenging the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.

However, Arthur Cox came off record for Tram in October, after “the relationship of trust and confidence” between the solicitors and the clients broke down “irreconcilably”.

According to court documents, when Arthur Cox sought to come off record, the solicitors had been unable to obtain instruction from Tram for some time, and had not received payment for their services. Tram did not retain new solicitors following the development.