CRUISE LINE STAYS EXECUTION OF JUDGMENT PENDING APPEAL WITHOUT POSTING A BOND BUT PROVIDING A LETTER OF UNDERTAKING BY P&I CLUB, OVER OBJECTION OF PLAINTIFF
JOHN and JOYCE SILIVANCH, Plaintiffs, - against - CELEBRITY CRUISES, INC., FANTASIA CRUISING INC., ESSEF CORP., PRE-FAB, and STRUCTURALEUROPE N.V. (f/n/a SFC), Defendants. CELEBRITY CRUISES, INC. and FANTASIACRUISING INC., Third-Party Plaintiffs, - against - STRUCTURAL EUROPE, ESSEFCORP., and PRE-FAB, Third-Party Defendants.
95 Civ. 0374 (JCF)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3270
February 28, 2002, Decided
February 28, 2002, Filed
DISPOSITION: Celebrity's motion for a stay of execution of judgment pending appeal granted.
OVERVIEW: Defendants Celebrity Cruises, Inc. and Fantasia Cruising, Inc. (collectively "Celebrity") have moved for an order staying execution of judgment pending appeal. Celebrity seeks to be relieved of the obligation of posting a bond and suggests, instead, that it would submit a Club Letter of Undertaking from its insurer United Kingdom Mutual (the "U.K. Club"). The plaintiffs object to this alternative, primarily on the ground that, should they prevail on appeal, they could be faced with further litigation to collect on the undertaking, rather than simply being able to draw down on a bond. In this case, the plaintiffs can be reasonably assured of obtaining full and prompt relief pursuant to the alternative proposed by Celebrity. "Celebrity is part of a multi-billion dollar company with hundreds of millions of dollars in net income." Moreover, the U.K. Club, which would submit the Club Letter of Undertaking, is the largest P & I club in the world and is itself "double-A" rated. In response to the Plaintiff's concerns, the court attached certain conditions to Celebrity's proposal. It shall be required to submit a Club Letter of Undertaking in which the U.K. Club: (1) consents to jurisdiction in this Court for all purposes relating to execution of the judgment, (2) appoints local counsel with authority to accept service of process here, and (3) concedes liability, jointly and severally with Celebrity, for any attorneys' fees and costs that may be incurred by the plaintiffs in the event that Celebrity's share of the judgment is not promptly paid to the extent affirmed on appeal.
