Appeal opens in UK Supreme Court for 58m detained superyacht Phi

The appeal hearing of the 58.5-metre Royal Huisman superyacht Phi, which was detained in 2022 on the basis of recently-introduced sanction law following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, opened in the UK Supreme Court today (16 January).

Phi has been detained in Canary Wharf, London under a movement restriction order, suffering hull degradation, lapsed insurances and trespassers, as Captain Guy Booth explained to BOAT International last year.

During today's hearing, the appellants (Dalston Projects Ltd) criticised the government's assumption that Phi's owner is connected to the Russian regime, despite not appearing on any sanctions lists. They also argued that the decision to seize and detain Phi interfered with the owner's basic property rights and, consequently, human rights law.

Public law rationality grounds were also cited, which maintain that governmental bodies are to act "rationally, fairly and lawfully" when assuming ownership of goods and not in a way that "den[ies] the rights of the true owner".

The Respondent (Secretary of State for Transport) reasserted that the assumption was rationally applied considering the owner's wealth and residency in Russia. They also argued that the detainment was a restriction of use, rather than an "absolute denial" of property rights. Maintenance on the yacht is still permitted, as is the presence of crew, and if the owner were to sell the yacht "to someone with no connection to Russia, [Phi] would no longer be detained". 

The court is now adjourned, with final judgement to be released "in due course".

This hearing follows a fraught legal process that most recently saw Phi's detention appeal dismissed by the UK Court of Appeal in March 2024. The Court held that the superyacht had not been detained for an improper purpose, agreeing with the Respondent's claim that "directly or indirectly, a [Russian of significant wealth] is likely to have benefitted from the Russian regime." 

The ruling read: "It is rational to consider that [the owner] is the sort of individual on whom sanctions could effect the 'broad and deep impact' which Parliament intended."

However, it also agreed with elements of the appeal, noting that it was incorrect for then-Transport Secretary Grant Shapps to claim that the owner was "connected with Putin".

Representatives of the superyacht filed the appeal in August 2023, arguing that the ruling in July 2023 upholding the detention was unlawful. BOAT International has reported extensively on the case over the years.