CONTINENTAL LINES SOCIETE ANONYME v. W. H. HOLT & SONS (CHORLTON-CUM-HARDY), LTD.

(1932) 43 Ll L Rep 392

KING'S BENCH DIVISION.

Before Mr. Justice Branson.

Foreign judgment-Indemnity-Sale of whisky by defendants to A-Whisky warehoused at Antwerp by plaintiffs, A holding warehouse receipts-Defendants' instructions to plaintiffs to ship whisky ex warehouse-Claim brought in Belgian Court by A against plaintiffs for conversion-Agreement by defendants to indemnify plaintiffs- Judgment given by Belgian Court against plaintiffs and ordering defendants to indemnify them-Claim by plaintiffs upon foreign judgment- Whether final and conclusive-Enforceability -Illegality of contract of sale- Effect upon rights of parties-Held, as to illegality, that there was no evidence that the plaintiffs were employed to do other than the ordinary work of a shipbroker or shipping agent, and the fact that plaintiffs guessed that the defendants were engaged on a bootlegging adventure did not preclude plaintiffs from suing to recover moneys paid by reason of acting in a perfectly reasonable and ordinary way upon the instructions of their principals; further, that it was not proper to refuse upon that ground to deal with a judgment given by a competent Court in a foreign country; as to enforceability, held, that the right of plaintiffs to indemnity under the foreign judgment was not dependent upon the prior discharge by plaintiffs of their liability to A, but that the judgment was for a certain sum due from defendants to plaintiffs; further, that the foreign judgment was conclusive that the defendants were bound to indemnify plaintiffs under their contract of indemnity.