St. Petersburg port designer managed to fight off claims due to stones in the bay

Ministry of Transport failed to force the designer of seaports to pay for the bad bottom off the Far Eastern coast. The state department had to remove the stones on its own according to the decision of the Arbitration Court of the North-Western District after almost two years of dispute.

Alexander Arbouzov, Partner of the "Duvernoix Legal" law firm, is not surprised that the litigation dragged on for 2 years. "This issue is primarily not of a legal nature but rather natural-scientific. For its correct solution, it is necessary to establish whether the bottom in this part of the sea really tends to change, and how often. If it turns out that 7 years since the preparation of the project documentation is really too long for its implementation, then most likely the courts are right and Rosmorport acted imprudently. However, even in this case there may be nuances related to the specific content of the documentation and the terms of reference of “Morstroytekhnologii”. For example, if there is a duty to forecast changes in the bottom relief," the lawyer says.