What was in issue

Our client discovered on a Friday afternoon that assets it claimed beneficially were being moved through four jurisdictions and two trust structures.

How it ran

We applied without notice that evening. The affidavit ran to sixty pages and had to satisfy the duty of full and frank disclosure on a timetable of hours, not days.

The result

Worldwide freezing relief was granted the same night, with ancillary disclosure orders against the trustees. The bulk of the assets were preserved and the claim settled four months later.

Freezing relief obtained without notice is granted on the strength of the applicant’s own evidence, and the duty of full and frank disclosure is what makes that acceptable to the court.

What decided it

The respondent’s application to discharge focused on material said to have been withheld. We were able to show that each matter had been put before the judge, in terms, at the without-notice hearing, and the order survived.

Why it matters

More freezing orders are lost on disclosure failures than on the merits of the underlying claim. The discipline of setting out the respondent’s likely answers, fairly and in full, is what preserves the order at the return date.