NK Mulsan Co Ltd v INTL Asia Pte Ltd: Summary Judgment for Return of Deposit under Deposit Agreement

In NK Mulsan Co Ltd v INTL Asia Pte Ltd, the High Court of Singapore heard appeals regarding an Assistant Registrar's decision on NK Mulsan's claim against INTL Asia for the return of a US$3 million deposit under a Deposit Agreement. The court, presided over by Justice Woo Bih Li, allowed NK Mulsan's appeal in part, granting summary judgment for US$1,646,860 with interest and costs. The court dismissed INTL Asia's appeal to strike out the action and varied the stay order to apply only to the balance of NKM's claim. The decision was made on November 8, 2018, following a hearing on September 4, 2018. The case involved a claim for the return of a deposit.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

High Court of Singapore

1.2 Outcome

Appeal Allowed in Part

1.3 Case Type

Civil

1.4 Judgment Type

Grounds of Decision

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

Summary judgment granted to NK Mulsan for partial return of deposit from INTL Asia under a Deposit Agreement, pending Hong Kong arbitration.

1.7 Decision Date

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party NameRoleTypeOutcomeOutcome TypeCounsels
NK Mulsan Co LtdPlaintiff, AppellantCorporationAppeal allowed in partPartial
INTL Asia Pte LtdDefendant, Appellant, RespondentCorporationAppeal dismissedLost

3. Judges

Judge NameTitleDelivered Judgment
Woo Bih LiJudgeYes

4. Counsels

Counsel NameOrganization
Suresh DivyanathanOon & Bazul LLP
Leong Yu Chong AaronOon & Bazul LLP
Tan Thye Hoe TimothyAsiaLegal LLC
Shakti SadashivAsiaLegal LLC

4. Facts

  1. NK Mulsan Co Ltd and INTL Asia Pte Ltd entered into a Deposit Agreement on 19 August 2016.
  2. The Deposit Agreement was amended on 9 January 2017 and 31 May 2017.
  3. The Deposit of US$3 million secured NKM’s obligations to INTL arising from a Coal Sales Agreement.
  4. INTL was to return the Deposit on 5 January 2018 if NKM fulfilled its obligations.
  5. INTL did not return the deposit on 5 January 2018.
  6. INTL raised a counterclaim of US$1,353,140 in Hong Kong arbitration proceedings.
  7. INTL argued it was entitled to withhold the entire deposit due to the counterclaim and potential arbitration costs.

5. Formal Citations

  1. NK Mulsan Co Ltd v INTL Asia Pte Ltd, Suit No 139 of 2018, [2018] SGHC 241

6. Timeline

DateEvent
Deposit Agreement signed
Deposit Agreement amended
Deposit Agreement amended
Yoon & Yang reminded INTL Asia of the deposit return date
Yoon & Yang claimed demurrage against INTL Asia
Holman Fenwick Willan acknowledged receipt and review
Deposit was due to be returned
Yoon & Yang followed up on the deposit return
Holman Fenwick Willan stated the return was conditional
Arbitration proceedings commenced in Hong Kong
Action filed in Singapore
INTL Asia stated it had a counterclaim
INTL Asia filed its Defence
NKM filed a Reply to INTL’s Defence
INTL Asia filed Summons No 1788 of 2018 to strike out or stay the action
NKM filed an affidavit to respond to INTL’s striking out application
NKM filed Summons No 2020 of 2018 for summary judgment
INTL Asia filed an affidavit for both summonses
Assistant Registrar dismissed NKM’s application for summary judgment
Registrar’s Appeals were filed
Arguments heard in respect of all three appeals
Judgment delivered

7. Legal Issues

  1. Summary Judgment
    • Outcome: Summary judgment granted in part.
    • Category: Procedural
  2. Interpretation of Deposit Agreement
    • Outcome: The court construed the Deposit Agreement to allow INTL to withhold only the amount equivalent to its estimated counterclaim.
    • Category: Substantive

8. Remedies Sought

  1. Return of Deposit
  2. Interest
  3. Costs

9. Cause of Actions

  • Breach of Contract

10. Practice Areas

  • Commercial Litigation
  • Arbitration

11. Industries

  • Commodities Trading

12. Cited Cases

Case NameCourtAffirmedCitationJurisdictionSignificance
No cited cases

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute NameJurisdiction
Rules of Court (Cap 322, R5, 2014 Rev Ed)Singapore

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

  • Deposit Agreement
  • Deposit
  • Coal Sales Agreement
  • Sale Contracts
  • Summary Judgment
  • Counterclaim
  • Obligations
  • Costs of collection

15.2 Keywords

  • Deposit
  • Summary Judgment
  • Singapore
  • Contract
  • Arbitration

17. Areas of Law

Area NameRelevance Score
Summary Judgement90
Civil Practice75
Arbitration60
Breach of Contract50
Contract Law50

16. Subjects

  • Contract Law
  • Civil Procedure
  • Arbitration