UK court rejects SocGen’s plea to move £118m row with Clifford Chance to France
The English Court of Appeal has rejected French bank Societe Generale’s (SocGen) plea to move its negligence claim against magic circle law firm Clifford Chance to a French court.
The dispute dates back to when Clifford Chance acted for the French bank in a $480m (£384m) claim against Goldas Group, specifically Turkish and Dubai manufacturing and jewellery businesses, in a legal battle between 2008 to 2017.
The claims were struck out in both the High Court in 2017 and the Court of Appeal the following year. It was noted in the High Court judgment that Pekin & Pekin, a Turkish law firm that has worked with Clifford Chance, provided “incorrect advice”.
The judge added the French bank took “erroneous advice from its Turkish lawyers“.
SocGen launched legal action against the law firm in France, alleging that Clifford Chance was negligent in its handling of the Goldas litigation, as it sought damages in excess of €140m (£118m).
However, the parties were at the High Court in England in late 2023 over a jurisdiction battle as the law firm said as its UK office that was instructed, and not its French office.
SocGen applied to challenge the court’s jurisdiction to hear this claim in a French court and not the English court.
In October 2023, Mr Justice Henshaw ruled that it was not shown that the courts of France are the “appropriate forum” and “to the contrary, this court is that forum”. He rejected SocGen’s jurisdiction challenge.
The issue over jurisdiction went up to the Court of Appeal as SocGen sought to overturn this decision. The parties went to a hearing in early October, a year after the High Court ruling.
On Monday, the Court of Appeal rejected SocGen, with all three justices agreeing.
In the ruling, the judges noted that SocGen case may continue in France despite the English courts’ rulings.
But the judge stated “there must be a realistic expectation that SocGen, and indeed the French court, will be reluctant to duplicate in France proceedings in England as to the alleged negligent conduct by English solicitors of Commercial Court proceedings in London.”
Both Clifford Chance and SocGen declined to comment.