Rachel Ann LYNCH v The Vessel "Bryanna" [1999] NSWSC 955

New South Wales Supreme Court CITATION : Rachel Ann LYNCH v The Vessel "Bryanna" [1999] NSWSC 955 CURRENT JURISDICTION : Equity Division Admiralty List FILE NUMBER(S) : No. 3 of 1999 HEARING DATE(S) : 02.08.99, 03.08.99, 26.08.99 JUDGMENT DATE : 23 September 1999

PARTIES : Rachel Ann LYNCH v The Vessel "Bryanna" JUDGMENT OF : Foster AJ

COUNSEL : Mr R. J. Weber for the plaintiff Mr M. B. Duncan for the defendant. SOLICITORS : Messrs Ebsworth & Ebsworth for the plaintiff Messrs Davidsons for the defendant CATCHWORDS : Shipping and navigation - Enforcement of mortgage over whole of vessel - Preferred Mortgage registered with U.S. Coast Guard within definition of "mortgage" Admiralty Act 1988 (Cth) s.3 - Preferred Mortgage valid - Defendant took ownership of vessel subject to the Preferred Mortgage - Equity - No equitable defences proved to prevent enforcement of mortgage - to extent acts of third party may be contrary to equity not attributable to plaintiff - Admiralty Act 1988 (Cth) ss. 3, 4(2)(a)(iii), 16. ACTS CITED : Admiralty Act 1988 (Cth) ss. 3, 4(2)(a)(iii), 16 DECISION : Refer Paragraph 55

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES EQUITY DIVISION ADMIRALTY LIST

FOSTER AJ

THURSDAY, 23 September, 1999

No. 3 of 1999 Rachel Ann LYNCH v The Vessel "BRYANNA"

JUDGMENT 1 HIS HONOUR: These proceedings are brought in the Admiralty List of the Equity Division of this Court. The plaintiff, Rachel Ann Lynch (Rachel), is a citizen of the United States of America. The defendant, the vessel "Bryanna" (Bryanna), is a sea-going yacht registered in the United States of America with the United States Coast Guard and bears the official number 645565. Bryanna was arrested on 18 February 1999 under a warrant issued by this Court pursuant to a writ of the same date, filed on behalf of Rachel, claiming damages in the sum of US $40,651.00 or, alternatively, US$40,000.00 together with interest and costs. The amount is claimed as owing under a mortgage of Bryanna, the mortgagor being Loretta Dawn Reed Lynch (Loretta) who is named as the "relevant person" in the writ. The statement of claim accompanying the writ sets out the circumstances in which the mortgage debt is alleged to have arisen. I shall refer to these later. 2 By her defence, Loretta seeks to impugn the validity of the mortgage and denies her indebtedness under it. She also asserts that she has an unencumbered title to Bryanna. Again, I shall refer to these matters later. It is convenient, at this stage, to set out, by way of background, facts which are not in contention between the parties, or which I find to be established.