Pleshakov (Appellant) v Sky Stream Corporation and others (Respondents) (British Virgin Islands)

Case summary

Case ID

JCPC/2019/0084

Jurisdiction

British Virgin Islands

Parties

Appellant(s)

Pleshakov

Respondent(s)

Sky Stream Corporation and others

Issue

Was the Court of Appeal wrong to find that the trial judge had made errors in his approach to the evidence and wrong to intervene in the findings of fact the judge had made on the basis of that evidence? Was the Court of Appeal free to carry out its own evaluation and arrive at its own conclusions?

Facts

In the underlying dispute in this appeal, the Appellant claims beneficial ownership of all of the issued shares of the First Respondent, Sky Stream Corporation. In 1990 the Appellant founded a Russian company called Transaero Airlines ("Transaero"). In 2005, the Appellant held (directly or indirectly) around 32% of the shares in Transaero and his family held another around 11% of the shares. Another group of companies ("the BB Group") held just over 43% of the shares in Transaero.The First Respondent, Sky Stream Corporation, was incorporated in the British Virgin Islands in 2005 for the purposes of acquiring shares in Transaero. The Second and Third Respondents are Russian lawyers. The Appellant contends that upon incorporation of Sky Stream, when its shares were allotted 50:50 to the Second and Third Respondents, these shares were held by them as nominees for him. The Second and Third Respondents were appointed as Sky Stream’s Directors.In 2013, the Appellant began proceedings seeking a declaration that the Second and Third Respondents acquired the Sky Stream shares as nominees for the Appellant and seeking rectification of the register of members to reflect his ownership of the shares. The Commercial Court allowed the Appellant’s claim and held that the Second and Third Respondents acquired the Sky Stream shares as nominees for the Appellant. In a judgment delivered more than three years after the appeal was heard, the Court of Appeal allowed the Second and Third Respondents’ appeal and set aside the orders made by the Commercial Court. The Appellant now appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

Date of issue

31 July 2019

Judgment details

Judgment date

14 June 2021

Neutral citation

[2021] UKPC 15

Judgment links

Appeal

Justices

Lord Briggs

Lady Arden

Lord Sales

Lord Hamblen

Lord Stephens

Hearing dates

Start date

28 January 2021

End date

28 January 2021

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