Mareva Revisited

The English Court of Appeal has delivered a judgment in the case of Dadourian Group International Inc. v Simms, in which it has for the first time set out comprehensive guidelines in relation to an application for leave to enforce abroad a worldwide asset-freezing order granted by a local court. These guidelines will come to be known as the "Dadourian Guidelines".

This decision has profound ramifications for the grant and enforcement of worldwide asset-freezing injunctions in offshore jurisdictions (where they are still known as ‘Mareva’ injunctions), and for the preparation and presentation of applications for such orders.

It has been accepted since 1990 that a court can grant a freezing order in respect of assets outside its jurisdiction. However, the standard form of order contains an undertaking by the claimant not to seek to enforce the order in another jurisdiction without the court’s leave. This restriction is designed to protect a defendant from the risk of oppression