The Court of Appeal for Bermuda has upheld the right of F.G. Hemisphere Associates to enforce a judgment against the State of Congo (DRC) and its government department, the Office Congolaise des Postes et Telecommunications.

The case ended up on appeal due to competing claims from two creditors for monies from the sale of 252,254 shares in Intelsat that were beneficially owned by DRC.

That $2.84 million plus accumulated interest in proceeds has been frozen by the courts since last year when DRC judgment creditors Hemisphere and then New Skies Satellites B.V. both attempted to enforce legal judgements against the fund as an asset of DRC in Bermuda.

Hemisphere first laid claim to the monies in 2003 after the International Chamber of Commerce International Court of Arbitration gave it an award against the DRC in the amount of $22.9 million.

Its march towards obtaining part-payment of the amount due to it under the ICC Award from the sum held in court in Bermuda was interrupted however by proceedings launched by New Skies against Intelsat, DRC and DRC?s telecommunications department.

New Skies filed a a writ to help it enforce a judgment awarded by the District Court of the Hague in the amount of $17.3 million against the Intelsat shares registered to the DRC?s department.

New Skies appealed after Puisne Justice Norma Wade Miller ordered that the sum held in Court should be paid out to Hemisphere in part-satisfaction of its judgment against the DRC.

This month, the Court of Appeal upheld her ruling.

Bermuda-based New Skies had argued that the rules of court in Bermuda did not provide the ability for Hemisphere to enforce an arbitration award made outside of the territory of Bermuda ? the ICC is based in Paris.

The court held that it has the power to decide in the exercise of its discretion whether or not leave to enforce the award should be given, and if so, on what terms.

?If it is a case of ambiguity, we should prefer the construction which enables Bermuda to perform the international treaty obligations undertaken on its behalf,? the court said.

It dismissed the appeal and ruled that the judgment entered by Hemisphere was valid and can be enforced.