Gillian Christine Hope v Libor Stanislav Karol Krejci
| Jurisdiction | Ireland |
| Judge | Mr. Justice Bodey |
| Judgment Date | 31 January 2014 |
| Docket Number | Case No. FD00D13664 |
| Court | High Court |
| Date | 31 January 2014 |
[2014] EWHC B5
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE
FAMILY DIVISION
Royal Courts of Justice
Mr. Justice Bodey
Case No. FD00D13664
Mr. D. Brooks appeared on behalf of the Applicant.
Mr. T. Becker appeared on behalf of the Respondent.
JUDGMENT (APROVED)
These are committal proceedings brought by Gillian Hope (whom I shall refer to as "the wife") against Libor Krejci (whom I shall refer to as "the husband"). It is said that the husband is in contempt in court in not having transferred to the wife, pursuant to financial remedy orders, two Mercedes motor cars, one of which has a personalised number plate LB01, and a Harley Davidson motorcycle. The wife has been represented by Mr. Brooks and the husband by Mr. Becker. I am grateful to them for their arguments in the course of which they have said everything which could be said on behalf of their respective clients.
The parties married in 1983 and separated in 2000. A good deal later there were financial remedy proceedings which I will come to in a minute. But first it is necessary to explain that during the course of the marriage the husband's father set up a family trust in Jersey called the Krejci Family Trust. The beneficiaries were originally the husband, the wife, the parties' daughter, who is now an adult, and another daughter of the husband's previous relationship. During the course of the proceedings the wife was excluded from the class of beneficiaries. That family trust is the 100% owner of a company called Damsonetti Holdings Ltd., which in turn owned the vehicles to which I have referred, namely a Mercedes SL350 with the personalised number plate I have mentioned; a Mercedes CL500, and a Harley Davidson Hugger motorcycle. The personalised number plate, LB01, can be seen to be similar to the husband's first name, Libor.
There were numerous interlocutory applications prior to the final financial remedy hearing in July 2011. At one of those, namely on 18 th March 2011, Mrs. Justice Parker made an order until further order that none of the assets I have mentioned should be removed from this jurisdiction. That order has remained extant throughout.
The final hearing of the wife's application for a financial remedy order came before Mr. Justice Mostyn on 22 nd July 2011. Mr. Justice Mostyn was highly critical of the husband's litigation conduct, which he described as "truly abysmal" and "highly unsatisfactory". He went on that: "… time and again he was asked to answer simple and straightforward questions. His replies were all laconic to the point of total unhelpfulness and, in some instances, misleading and inexact. By his conduct the wife was forced to incur vast costs. His oral testimony was frankly appalling. He was rude, confrontational, aggressive and contemptuous of Mr. Brooks [the wife's counsel]". The orders which Mr. Justice Mostyn made on that occasion were that the husband should pay the wife a lump sum of £268,000 with £100,000 towards her costs. He adjourned the wife's application to vary the Krejci Family Trust to see whether or not the lump sum and costs orders were met. He also made a finding that the Krejci Family Trust property was in effect all the husband's property.
The monies were not paid and accordingly the wife restored her application to vary the family trust. That application came again before Mr. Justice Mostyn on 19 th July 2012. On this occasion he formally varied the trust to provide that the three vehicles should become the wife's sole property. He ordered that they be transferred by the husband to her, subject to a possible intervention by an intervenor, one DR, who claimed to own the Mercedes SL350 bearing the number plate LB01. Mr. Justice Mostyn gave directions for DR to intervene and ordered trial of the ownership issue by a District Judge. In the course of his judgment, which is reported as Hope v Krejci & ors [2013] 1 FLR 182, at para.33 he said: "The only 'positive equity' assets within the jurisdiction, and therefore within my direct powers, are [two real properties], the motorcycle and the two cars". He appointed to the wife "the motorcycle and the two Mercedes-Benz motorcars and the number plate LB01, which I am perfectly satisfied are owned beneficially by Damsonetti Holdings Ltd." (It will be recalled that Damsonetti Holdings Ltd. is held 100% by the family trust). He then went on to provide that the wife could sell these assets and give credit for that money in respect of the outstanding lump sum. As regards those three vehicles, including the personalised number plate attached to the Mercedes CL500, he said: "I would be surprised if they were worth more than £16,000".
After the judgment the husband revealed that, in fact, DR had already taken the Mercedes SL350 bearing the number plate LB01 to the Czech Republic where he, DR, lives; further, that his (the husband's) nephew had already taken the motorcycle to Odessa, on the Black Sea.
On 18 th October 2012 the intervention application by DR to claim ownership of the Mercedes SL350 came before Deputy District Judge Marks. At that hearing DR did not attend, although I am told that he had given a list of dates of unavailability upon which that day did not feature. The District Judge dismissed DR's application to intervene and directed that the husband and the trustees should forthwith transfer the Mercedes LB01 to the wife.
The husband and Damsonetti Holdings Ltd. thereafter applied for permission to appeal that order. That application came on 26 th November 2012 before Mr. Justice Coleridge. He was prepared to give permission; but only on conditions that the Mercedes SL350 and the number plate be brought to this jurisdiction by 17 th December 2012 and that the costs ordered by District Judge Marks on 18 th October 2012, in the sum of £2,900, be also lodged. The date of 17 th December 2012 was extended by other judges, but in any event the vehicle was not brought back into the jurisdiction by the due date.
Meanwhile DR had applied to vary those conditions imposed by Mr. Justice Coleridge on his having permission to appeal the order of District Judge Marks. That application came on again before Mr. Justice Coleridge on 28 th January 2013. He dismissed it as being wholly without merit. He also dismissed the husband's and Damsonetti's appeals against District Judge Marks' order. He made orders requiring the husband and Damsonetti Holdings to deliver up the Mercedes CL500 and the motorcycle to the wife by 4 th February 2013 and, requiring the husband, Damsonetti Holdings Ltd. and DR to deliver up the Mercedes SL350 together with the number plate LB01 also by 4 th February 2013. He directed that the costs still outstanding from the hearing before District Judge Marks of £2,900 be paid by the...
To continue reading
Request your trial