Ricardo Benjamin Salinas Pliego & Anor v Astor Asset Management 3 Limited & Ors

Ricardo Benjamin Salinas Pliego & Anor v Astor Asset Management 3 Limited & Ors

The claimants' engagement of private investigators to obtain sensitive information from the defendants' solicitor through unethical means constituted an abuse of process. This conduct, irrespective of the evidential status of the information obtained, is fundamentally incompatible with the norms of civil litigation. The appropriate and proportionate response is to strike out the claimants' summary judgment application and award indemnity costs, but not to strike out or stay the entire claim at this stage. The fate of the proceedings and admissibility of the illicit information are deferred to a further hearing.

Parties
Claimant: Ricardo Benjamin Salinas Pliego; Claimant: Corporacion RBS SA de CV; Defendant: Astor Asset Management 3 Limited; Defendant: Weiser Global Capital Markets Ltd; Defendant: Tavira Monaco SAM; Defendant: Vladimir Sklarov; Defendant: Cornelius Vanderbilt Capital Management Ltd; Defendant: Astor Capital Fund Limited
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
13 November 2025
Procedural Posture
Commercial Fraud and Contract Dispute / Ruling on Summary Judgment Application and Cross Applications (strike Out/stay, Evidentiary Directions, Discharge of Freezing Orders)
Outcome
Summary judgment application struck out; claim not struck out or stayed; costs to claimants on indemnity basis; further directions and hearings ordered.
Legal Topics
Abuse of Process, Legal Professional Privilege, Summary Judgment, Fraud, Evidentiary Rules
Civil Procedure Commercial Law Professional Ethics Abuse of Process Legal Professional Privilege Summary Judgment Fraud Evidentiary Rules

Case Brief

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Parties

Ricardo Benjamin Salinas Pliego

Claimant

Corporacion RBS SA de CV

Claimant

Astor Asset Management 3 Limited

Defendant

Weiser Global Capital Markets Ltd

Defendant

Tavira Monaco SAM

Defendant

Vladimir Sklarov

Defendant

Cornelius Vanderbilt Capital Management Ltd

Defendant

Astor Capital Fund Limited

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Commercial Fraud and Contract Dispute / Ruling on Summary Judgment Application and Cross Applications (strike Out/stay, Evidentiary Directions, Discharge of Freezing Orders)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether claimants' conduct in obtaining information from defendants' solicitor was an abuse of process
  2. 2 Whether summary judgment should be granted or struck out due to claimants' conduct
  3. 3 Status and admissibility of information obtained through unethical means

Ratio Decidendi

The claimants' engagement of private investigators to obtain sensitive information from the defendants' solicitor through unethical means constituted an abuse of process. This conduct, irrespective of the evidential status of the information obtained, is fundamentally incompatible with the norms of civil litigation. The appropriate and proportionate response is to strike out the claimants' summary judgment application and award indemnity costs, but not to strike out or stay the entire claim at this stage. The fate of the proceedings and admissibility of the illicit information are deferred to a further hearing.

Court Disposition

Summary judgment application struck out; claim not struck out or stayed; costs to claimants on indemnity basis; further directions and hearings ordered.

Orders

  • Summary judgment application struck out of the court's own motion and as a matter of inherent jurisdiction.
  • Claimants to pay costs of the hearing on the indemnity basis, subject to further argument if not agreed.