Law digests: 20 June 2025

Arbitration

The Federal Republic of Nigeria v Process and Industrial Developments Ltd and another [2025] EWCA Civ 715

The Court of Appeal refused the application for permission to appeal by Mr Seamus Andrew, a solicitor and barrister, against findings made against him in the Commercial Court judgment. The findings concerned allegations of misconduct, including improper retention of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s (FRN) privileged documents, during arbitration proceedings where Mr Andrew acted as counsel for Process & Industrial Developments Limited (P&ID). In dealing with two preliminary questions, the court held that the application for permission to appeal was out of time and should be refused on that ground alone; further, that the court did not have jurisdiction to entertain this application for permission to appeal, permission to appeal not having been obtained from the judge. Among other things, the judge ruled that the judge’s finding that Mr Andrew’s conduct in not stopping the use by P&ID of FRN internal legal documents and returning them to FRN was ‘indefensible’ was plainly correct. The judgment upheld specific findings of dishonesty against Mr Andrew,