Garcia v BIH (UK) Ltd and Others – QBD (Admlty Div) (Jervis Kay QC, Admiralty Registrar) [2017] EWHC 739 (Admlty) – 6 April 2017

  Practice – Service of proceedings out of the jurisdiction – Claimant diver suffering personal injuries when working off Gabon – Claimant bringing proceedings in contract and in tort against English employer and also against Gabon company – Whether Gabon company was a “necessary or proper party” – Whether permission to serve out should be set aside – Whether claim against Gabon company should be stayed on forum non conveniens grounds

The claimant was a French national who worked as a professional diver on a coastal construction project off Gabon in West Africa. He suffered catastrophic injuries from an accident on 14 June 2013 when he was working under a contract of employment issued in the name of the first defendant, BIH (UK) Ltd, a UK company (BIH).