By Robert A Emmanuel
There has been another twist in the tale regarding the sale of the Alfa Nero, with the government officially filing a counter appeal in the ongoing legal action.
Despite government efforts to facilitate its sale nearly one month ago, the vessel has attracted a flurry of legal challenges aimed at preventing the finalisation of this process.
Dr David Dorsett, the attorney representing Yulia Guryeva-Motlokhov who claims to own the boat, told Observer that the government has sought to challenge the judge’s ruling that there was a serious issue to be tried on the question of whether Section 38A of the Port Authority Act—an amendment passed in early February—contradicted section nine of the Constitution which prohibits the deprivation of property without proper compensation.
This new development was also confirmed to Observer by senior counsel for the government in the matter, Anthony Astaphan.
“The counter appeal is in relation to the appeal by Dr Dorsett’s client, the daughter of the Russian oligarch. The appeal from the refusal of the judge to grant the injunction and our cross appeal was that he should have dismissed it on the ground that she had no proprietary rights or interest…so therefore there was no serious issue to be tried as to whether she has an interest in the boat or not,” Astaphan explained.
In late June, Guryeva-Motlokhov appealed on the grounds that the Port Authority (Amendment) Act allowed the government to take hold of her property, the Alfa Nero, without compensation, and that the Act only permitted the Port Manager to take possession of the vessel but did not confer any title.
Additionally, they argued that the Port Manager was not the holder of an Auctioneer’s Licence, and the vessel was not entitled to be registered under the Antigua and Barbuda Merchant Shipping Act.
An earlier appeal for an emergency injunction to stop the auction from proceeding was rejected by the court.
The latest move in the legal battle comes as the government plans to offer legal guarantees to the winning bidder in last month’s auction, American tech executive Eric Schmidt, over any liabilities that may arise from the litigations.
According to the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff, the government plans to go to Parliament this Tuesday to table those changes.
Nothing has been reported so far as to the details of this guarantee.
The 267ft superyacht – previously said to have been owned by sanctioned Russian fertiliser tycoon Andrey Guryev – has been stuck in the Falmouth Harbour for more than year with little maintenance. Government officials have repeatedly sought to see its stern sailing into the blue waters of the Caribbean Sea instead of the government continuing to incur more costs to ensure its operation.