The High Court has ordered SC Vola.ro SRL to provide further details of its counterclaim against Ryanair DAC, while directing that Ryanair’s claim against both defendants be heard first in a modular trial.
In a judgment delivered on 24 July 2020, Mr Justice Mark Sanfey set out orders following an earlier judgment on competing applications in the proceedings. The court dismissed Ryanair’s application to strike out the first defendant’s counterclaim and refused Ryanair’s request to stay the counterclaim until its own claim had been determined.
The judge had found the counterclaim insufficiently pleaded and identified five matters requiring further particulars. The new order gives SC Vola.ro SRL six weeks from the making of the order to provide them. The court declined to make an “unless” order, but said the replies should address the matters substantially and meaningfully and warned that failure could have serious consequences for the first defendant.
The trial will proceed in modules. The liability issues in Ryanair’s claim against both defendants are to be heard and determined first. The first defendant’s counterclaim will be tried afterwards as a second module. The court did not decide whether any orders on Ryanair’s claim should be made immediately if Ryanair succeeds, or deferred until the counterclaim is determined; that question was left for later argument.
The judge awarded Ryanair 25% of the costs of its motion issued on 8 October 2019, reflecting its success in obtaining a modular trial. The first defendant received no costs on Ryanair’s motion. The court also dismissed the first defendant’s requests to stay Ryanair’s claim and to have its own counterclaim heard first. Ryanair was awarded the costs of the first defendant’s motion, issued on 23 October 2019.
On case management, the court deferred setting deadlines for the litigation as a whole until the further particulars are provided. The second defendant, Ypsilon.net AG, is to be made aware of the parties’ proposed timetables and invited to support one or submit its own. The matter was to be listed before the judge for a date in September 2020, to be notified to the parties, to address issues arising from the particulars and whether a timetable could be agreed.