MALTA Law and Practice Contributed by: Joseph Ghio, Fenech & Fenech Advocates
Other Relief Following judicial determination of a lessor or mortga - gee’s claim, apart from an executive warrant of arrest of aircraft, a new executive warrant was recently intro - duced for the ejectment or expulsion from the aircraft of the operator, lessee or other occupants, including any members of their staff, within a period of not less than four and not more than eight days from the day they are so enjoined by the court executing officer. In default, the operator, lessee or other occupants, including any members of their staff, will be removed from the aircraft concerned. For the purpose of exe - cuting the aforementioned warrant, the aircraft indi - cated therein will be detained in Malta. 2.6.5 Domestic Courts’ Approach to Foreign Laws and Judgments Maltese courts will be expected to uphold: • a foreign law as the governing law of an aircraft lease subject and pursuant to the Rome I Regula - tion; • the submission to a foreign jurisdiction as regards an aircraft lease subject to and pursuant to Regu - lation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parlia - ment and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (the “Brussels Recast Regulation”); and • a waiver of immunity by the parties of such lease. 2.6.6 Domestic Courts’ Recognition of Foreign Judgments/Awards Final Judgment of a Foreign Court In civil and commercial matters, domestic courts will recognise and enforce a final judgment of an EU mem - ber state court without re-examination of the mat - ter pursuant to and subject to the Brussels Recast Regulation. In the case of a final judgment delivered by a court of a non-EU member state, the domestic courts will recognise and enforce such a judgment without re-examination of the matter in accordance with and subject to any relevant multilateral or bilat - eral arrangement between Malta and the respective country in which the foreign court is located or, failing this, in accordance with and subject to national law, this being Articles 826 and 827 of the COCP.
In instituting such summary proceedings, the lessor must, in the court application, declare that in their belief there is no defence to the action. The court application must be in writing in the prescribed form and sworn under oath. Injunctive Relief There are a number of precautionary warrants availa - ble to a lessor by way of interim/injunctive relief pend - ing final judicial determination. These include the right to freeze or attach assets of the lessee as security for monetary claims and the right to arrest the aircraft or aircraft engine. The purpose of the latter is to secure a debt or claims or to secure the rights of the lessor in the context of a dissolution or termination of the aircraft lease by the lessor as a result of a default on the part of the lessee and the subsequent reposses - sion of the aircraft. The demand for the issue of any of the aforementioned acts must be made by an application, and contain: • the origin and nature of the debt or claim sought to be secured; • in the case of a debt, the amount of such debt and, where applicable, judicial costs; and • in the case of a warrant of arrest of an aircraft or engine, the warrant sued out by means of an appli - cation on the prescribed form, which must state in a clear manner such particulars as to enable the identification of the aircraft/aircraft engine, the name of the authority under whose control the arrested aircraft/aircraft engine may be, as well as their location. The application has to be confirmed on oath by the lessor who, inter alia, must: • bring the action in respect of the claim within the time prescribed by law; and • 15 days prior to the application for the precaution - ary act, call upon the defendant to pay the debt or provide sufficient security. Injunctive relief can typically be obtained from the court within two business days or less.
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