UK Court Says Disclosure of Documents in Insurance Claim Doesn't Violate Russia Sanctions

The U.K. High Court of Justice on Jan. 29 ruled that disclosures of reinsurance documents from a reinsurance broker to an airplane leasing company wouldn't violate the U.K.'s Russia sanctions regime. The disclosures were related to an insurance claim on planes leased by Russian airline operators.

The court said compliance with a court order to disclose the documents doesn't amount to the provision of financial services or reinsurance services barred by the sanctions. Rather, they represent "obedience to an order of the court made for the purposes of the fair disposal of proceedings before it."

But even without the court order, the court said it would still find providing the documents doesn't violate the sanctions.

The purpose of the sanctions is to adversely impact the Russian state, Russian economy or Russian individuals, the court said. A "key purpose of the trade sanctions" is to bar the supply of restricted goods to Russia to put pressure on the nation to stop its invasion of Ukraine. As a result, the sanctions are not violated by a "broker supplying documents" to a third party since the services are not being provided to a person connected to Russia.

The case relates to Irish aviation leasing firm AerCap's claims against its insurers of aircraft and engines that weren't returned by Russian airline lessees after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. AerCap had requested documentation of the insurance policies from its insurance brokers. One of the reinsurance brokerage firms, McGill and Partners, said that disclosing the documents would violate the U.K.'s Russia sanctions.