In a high-stakes legal clash over a failed maritime transaction, Great Asia Maritime Ltd. argued before the Court of Appeal on Thursday that it is entitled to $1.85 million in damages after a botched ship sale, asserting it lost out on expected profits when seller Orion Shipping and Trading Ltd. failed to deliver a vessel on time.
The shipping company claims the “loss of bargain” damages stem from Orion’s negligence, which allegedly prevented the bulk carrier MV Lila Lisbon from being delivered by the agreed cancellation date. The dispute is now centered on whether the buyer can recover future earnings that were never realized due to the sale’s collapse.
Arbitral Win Undone by Court — Buyer Seeks Restoration
An arbitral tribunal had previously sided with Great Asia Maritime, awarding $1.85 million after concluding that Orion took insufficient steps to meet its contractual obligation to deliver the vessel. But that win was short-lived. In June 2024, High Court Judge Julia Dias overturned the award, ruling that “loss of bargain” damages weren’t valid under the contract’s language.
Judge Dias found that because the contract lacked a clause expressly governing breach and specifying such damages, the compensation for future lost profits was not justified.
But David Lewis KC of Twenty Essex, representing Great Asia Maritime, pushed back hard on Thursday, telling a three-judge panel that the lower court’s reasoning was flawed.
“It’s uncommercial for negligent sellers to escape liability,” Lewis said. “The parties clearly intended for the loss of bargain to fall on the wrongdoer.”
