In Re the Arbitration Between Holborn Oil Trading Ltd. & InterPetrol Bermuda Ltd.

658 F. Supp. 1205, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2450
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedApril 1, 1987
Docket86 Civ. 8244 (SWK)
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 658 F. Supp. 1205 (In Re the Arbitration Between Holborn Oil Trading Ltd. & InterPetrol Bermuda Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re the Arbitration Between Holborn Oil Trading Ltd. & InterPetrol Bermuda Ltd., 658 F. Supp. 1205, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2450 (S.D.N.Y. 1987).

Opinion

KRAM, District Judge.

This action is brought under the United States Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. § 203. Petitioner Holbom Oil Trading Ltd. (“Hol-born”) seeks to confirm and reduce to judgment an arbitration award holding it liable to Respondent InterPetrol Bermuda Limited (“InterPetrol”) for $217,103.00 plus in *1207 terest. The matter is presently before the Court on six motions. Both Andros Com-pañía Marítima, S.A. (“Andros”) and The Sanko Steamship Co., Ltd. (“Sanko”) have moved to intervene pursuant to Rule 24(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and for an injunction compelling any funds for satisfaction of the arbitration award to be deposited in the registry of this Court. Steven C. Pascal, P.C. (“Pascal”), as Trustee of a $10,000.00 security for payment of the arbitration panel’s fees, also moves to intervene under Rule 24. Finally, Holborn moves for an order pursuant to Rule 67 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (1) permitting Holborn to deposit with the Court the amount awarded to In-terPetrol plus accrued interest and less one-half of the arbitrators’ fees and (2) discharging Holborn from any further liability to InterPetrol under the arbitration award. For the reasons set forth below, Andros’ and Sanko’s motions to intervene are granted; Andros’ and Sanko's motions for a preliminary injunction are granted; Pascal’s motion to intervene is granted; and Holborn’s Rule 67 motion is granted.

Andros’ and Sanko’s Motions for Intervention

Andros and Sanko are judgment creditors of Intertanker, Ltd. (“Intertanker”), which, in turn, is an affiliate and creditor of InterPetrol. Andros obtained a judgment in November 1983 against Inter-tanker in the amount of $473,733.23. No part of that judgment has been satisfied. Sanko obtained a judgment against Inter-tanker in March 1983 in the amount of $164,057.31. No part of that judgment has been satisfied. As a result, Andros and Sanko claim to have an interest in InterPetrol’s arbitration award and move to intervene as of right pursuant to Rule 24(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. InterPetrol opposes these motions on the ground that neither Andros nor Sanko have an interest within the meaning of Rule 24(a)(2) because the claims do not relate directly to the subject matter of the action.

Rule 24(a)(2) provides:

Upon timely application anyone shall be permitted to intervene in an action ... when the applicant claims an interest relating to the property or transaction which is the subject of the action and he is so situated that the disposition of the action may as a practical matter impair or impede his ability to protect that interest, unless the applicant’s interest is adequately represented by existing parties.

Fed.R.Civ.P. 24(a)(2).

Under Rule 24(a)(2), then, an intervenor must meet four requirements: (1) that the application is timely; (2) that the applicant claims an interest relating to the property or transaction which is the subject matter of the action; (3) that the protection of the interest may as a practical matter be impaired by the disposition of the action; and (4) that the interest is not adequately protected by an existing party. Restor-A-Dent Dental Laboratories, Inc. v. Certified Alloy Products, Inc., 725 F.2d 871, 874 (2d Cir.1984).

As to the first requirement, no one argues, nor could they, that either Andros’ or Sanko’s motion is untimely. As to the third requirement, Andros and Sanko point out that Intertanker has no assets other than claims such as against InterPetrol, that InterPetrol has been inactive since 1982 and has no assets other than claims against third parties such as Holborn, and that InterPetrol, a Bermudian corporation, may otherwise transfer the proceeds of this action beyond the reach of creditors. The Court has no difficulty in holding that a decision resulting in the necessity of And-ros and Sanko bringing suit in the Bermudian courts to assert rights in property that is now the subject of adjudication by a court of the United States would “impede” the protection of those rights “as a practical matter” within the meaning of Rule 24. Diaz v. Southern Drilling Corp., 427 F.2d 1118, 1125 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 400 U.S. 878, 91 S.Ct. 118, 27 L.Ed.2d 115 (1970).

As to the fourth requirement, InterPe-trol, which stands in a position directly adverse to Andros and Sanko, and Holborn, which has no interest in advancing either Andros’ or Sanko’s claims to the proceeds, cannot be said to be in a position to ade *1208 quately protect Andros’ or Sanko's interests.

The critical inquiry on these facts, then, is whether Andros and Sanko have interests relating to the property or transaction which is the subject matter of this action, i.e., the $217,103.00 arbitration award in favor of InterPetrol. In this regard, the Second Circuit has noted that the term “interest” when used in this context defies a simple definition. Restor-A-Dent, 725 F.2d at 874. The interest must be “significantly protectable.” See Donaldson v. United States, 400 U.S. 517, 531, 91 S.Ct. 534, 542, 27 L.Ed.2d 580 (1971). It must be direct, not remote or contingent. Restor-A-Dent, 725 F.2d at 874; In re Penn Central Commercial Paper Litigation, 62 F.R.D. 341, 346-47 (S.D.N.Y.1974), aff 'd without opinion, 515 F.2d 505 (2d Cir.1975); 3B J. Moore, Moore’s Federal Practice ¶ 24.07[2] (2d ed. 1982). And, it also must be based on a right which belongs to the proposed intervenor rather than to an existing party to the suit. In re Penn Central, 62 F.R.D. at 346. Such definitions are, of course, imprecise, but it is difficult to be more than general in stating criteria designed to cover the multitude of possible intervention situations. Restor-A-Dent, 725 F.2d at 874.

Here, Andros and Sanko have asserted that they are judgment creditors of Inter-tanker, that InterPetrol is the parent company of Intertanker, that Intertanker is under the control of a provisional liquidator, that Intertanker’s main assets include a cause of action against InterPetrol for various monies owed to Intertanker by InterPetrol, and that InterPetrol is a Bermudian corporation whose only assets are the claims, such as in the instant arbitration, which it is pursuing against others. InterPetrol does not deny these assertions.

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Bluebook (online)
658 F. Supp. 1205, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2450, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-the-arbitration-between-holborn-oil-trading-ltd-interpetrol-nysd-1987.