Anti-suit injunction

General Motors Corporation v Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Plc and another [2007] EWHC 2206 (Comm) 2 October 2007; LSG 18 October

A large number of claims for alleged asbestos-related injury and environmental liability had been made against the claimant in the US. The claimant contended that its liability for claims and defence costs was covered by insurance policies, with an insurer (U) and its alter ego R. The claimant commenced proceedings in Michigan against U and R and also commenced English proceedings against R. R withdrew its motion to dismiss the Michigan proceedings on the grounds of forum non conveniens and the claimants’ claim in those proceedings was voluntarily dismissed as against R in favour of the English action. U then obtained summary disposition in the Michigan proceedings on grounds that the claims were time-barred. Subsequently, the claimant commenced proceedings against R in Delaware, which R contested on the grounds that the consent order, properly construed, reflected the parties’ intention to confer exclusive jurisdiction on the English courts to determine the claims against R.