d'Amico Dry Cargo is fighting to avoid a costly legal bill after its decade-long court battle with Primera Maritime.
The Italian bulker owner has appealed against a Manhattan federal court decision to halve its $1.77m legal fees award, after it won a $3.2m judgment against Primera late last year.
d'Amico persuaded the court to enforce a 2009 judgment won in England against Primera, a slew of affiliated companies and the father-son duo Nick and Paul Coronis. The US ruling included $1.79m from the English High Court judgment and $1.37m in accrued interest stemming from a freight forwarding agreement in which Primera failed to pay d'Amico.
In his April order regarding attorneys' fees, District Judge John Koeltl accused Primera of being obstructionist throughout the case, but gave merit to its argument that d'Amico is not eligible to be reimbursed for legal costs for two other cases — one ongoing in Alabama and a 2010 lawsuit in Texas.
He cut the award to $898,807.
In Texas, d'Amico intervened in a Primera-connected vessel seizure, but later moved for voluntary dismissal after the attachment was vacated.
In Alabama, the bulker arm of Paolo d'Amico-led d'Amico Group had another Primera-connected ship, the 29,194-dwt Seaglass II (built 2008) seized. Nikka Finance, the registered owner of the ship, has appealed, and d'Amico is seeking attorneys' fees.
