The Legal 500

Leading offshore law firm, Mourant Ozannes, has won the largest award of damages ever made by the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands. The US$2.5 billion award was granted by the Chief of Justice of the Cayman Islands in a ruling handed down on 12 June 2012.

The Cayman Islands litigation is concerned with the claim that Maan Al Sanea misappropriated billions of dollars from the Algosaibi family, whilst managing their financial services business, and transferred the proceeds into various Cayman Islands companies.

Mr Al Sanea sought to dispute the jurisdiction of the Cayman Islands court, claiming that certain issues had to be litigated in Saudi Arabia. Mr Al Sanea's attempts to dispute jurisdiction have been rejected by both the Cayman Islands Court of Appeal and, more recently, by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. 

Having already obtained a default judgment against Mr Al Sanea, Mourant Ozannes applied for an interim payment of US$2.5 billion and that application was granted by the Chief Justice.

The Mourant Ozannes team was lead by partner and Cayman Islands Head of Litigation, Peter Hayden, and senior associate George Keightley. They instructed Ewan McQuater QC and David Quest of 3 Verulam Buildings. The wider legal team includes a team from Lewis Baach in WashingtonD.C., lead by Eric Lewis and Kate Toomey, who have been managing the global litigation for the Algosaibis, and a team from Lipman Karas in London, lead by Andrew Ford. The forensic investigation was carried out by a team from Deloitte lead by Simon Charlton, whose evidence was relied on by the Algosaibis in seeking the interim payment.

Peter Hayden said: "The US$2.5 billion award is the largest award of damages ever made by the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands and may well be the largest ever interim award of damages made in any jurisdiction. It is an important milestone for the Algosaibi family in their attempts to seek justice. It is a pleasure to work with such a dedicated team of professionals, who have all played an important part in securing this victory for our client. I am immensely proud of the hard work and dedication of the Mourant Ozannes Litigation team."

Mourant Ozannes has one of the largest litigation practices in the Cayman Islands and the quality of the team has been recognised by numerous awards over the last few years.

For more information please visit www.mourantozannes.com

Mourant Ozannes is an offshore law firm.
It is the pre-eminent legal practice in the Channel Islands with unrivalled strength-in-depth and industry knowledge in Jersey and Guernsey. It also has a leading practice in the Cayman Islands where it has received a number of industry awards.

Mourant Ozannes' clients include many of the world's leading financial institutions, public companies, corporations, fund promoters and private clients. It is chosen regularly to work alongside the most respected international law firms with whom the firm enjoys deep and long-lasting relationships.

Mourant Ozannes recruits people who understand the paramount importance of exceptional client service and who share a passionate commitment to the firm's values. Many of the firm's lawyers have practised with leading law firms in London and other major finance centres bringing with them a wealth of knowledge and experience in their respective fields.

Mourant Ozannes has more top tier legal directory rankings than any other offshore law firm (as at Jan 2011 in Chambers & Partners, IFLR1000, Legal 500 and PLC Which Lawyer).