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A Saudi prince has successfully evaded a bankruptcy petition over a $1.2 billion arbitration debt linked to a Kuwaiti telecommunications company, as a London court ruled on Thursday that he cannot be served in the U.K. High Court Judge Nicholas Briggs determined that Mobile Telecommunications Co. KSCP, operating as Zain Group, lacked sufficient evidence to prove that Prince Hussam bin Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud had a U.K. residence between 2000 and 2019. This decision marks the latest chapter in a contentious battle over the prince’s alleged debt.

Residency at the Heart of the Case

The court concluded that Prince Hussam’s ties to the U.K. were too tenuous to establish residency, a key requirement for serving a bankruptcy petition in Britain. Judge Briggs noted that the prince’s use of a London property owned by his mother during his studies in the 1990s did not constitute residency. “There is insufficient evidence to find that occupation by Hussam of any property, during his temporary visits to the jurisdiction, is to be characterized as occupation in a dwelling house,” the judge stated. Factors influencing the ruling included the prince’s infrequent visits to the U.K. after 2016 and the lack of personal possessions at properties owned by his family in London. The court also dismissed claims that his name being registered for council tax payments established residency, deeming it an administrative expedient by a family secretary.

A Protracted Legal Battle

The $1.2 billion arbitration debt originated from a collapsed loan deal and has grown significantly due to accrued interest. The arbitration award was made in London in 2015, and Zain Group has since pursued enforcement through various legal channels. Zain successfully obtained an anti-suit injunction in English courts to block the prince from reviving the dispute in Saudi courts. Despite the injunction, the prince continued proceedings in Saudi Arabia, leading to a contempt of court ruling and a 12-month prison sentence in the U.K. The sentence has not been enforced, as the prince has not returned to Britain.

Legal Perspectives

Amrit Johal, the lead partner at Spencer West LLP representing Prince Hussam, praised the court’s decision as a “significant and hard-fought achievement.” “This judgment decisively closed the door on the bankruptcy petition,” Johal said. “Successfully shielding the client from a $1.2 billion bankruptcy claim, one they consistently contested, is far from an ordinary victory.” Zain Group’s legal representatives did not immediately comment on the ruling.

Representation in the Case

Mobile Telecommunications Co. KSCP: Represented by Stephen Moverley Smith KC, Catherine Hartston, and Owen Curry of XXIV Old Buildings, and Adam Baradon KC of Blackstone Chambers, instructed by Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.