Court strikes out Mineralogy’s claim

The Supreme Court of Western Australia has struck out some parts of Clive Palmer-owned Mineralogy’s pleas in an ongoing dispute with CITIC Limited.

In a judgment delivered yesterday, Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Martin struck out two paragraphs of Mineralogy’s pleas and declined the company any more time to amend its claims.

Mineralogy’s claim that millions of dollars of its legal costs were because of contracts signed with CITIC subsidiaries Sino Iron and Korean Steel was described by Justice Martin as grossly obfuscatory, a term that means to make unclear or confusing.

A legal dispute between Mineralogy and CITIC subsidiaries have been brewing for years, stemming from mining tenement agreements the parties signed in 2006.

CITIC operates the Sino Iron project in the Pilbara on mining tenements owned by Mineralogy.

Mineralogy alleged it incurred more than $18.5 million in costs in administering the agreements, including about $2.8 million to employ expert staff and establishing a Perth office.

The court has granted Mineralogy leave to amend its statement multiple times last year, according to the judgment.

However, the CITIC subsidiaries claimed the last rehabilitation opportunity had been used up by Mineralogy.

In his judgment, Justice Martin agreed that he had allowed Mineralogy another opportunity to correct deficiencies during a September hearing.

“I assess it as legally embarrassing to the point of being so unclear that to allow any trial to proceed upon it would be unfair, indeed vexing, to the CITIC parties,” he said in his judgment.

“As the CITIC parties assert … the nature and content of the $2.8 million claim in the end, after too much digging, remains nebulous and embarrassing.”

Justice Martin said Mineralogy carried an onus to establish why the internal wages and costs for the Perth employees could be recoup or if the fees incurred were related to administering the mining tenement agreements.

“As to why or how that might be put to be engaged, the murky mist surrounding Mineralogy's position for a trial has not been lifted satisfactorily to allow a fair trial to proceed, notwithstanding ample opportunity for that to be explained,” he said.

“Enough is enough.”

The WA Supreme Court has heard more than 30 proceedings between Mineralogy and CITIC, or its subsidiaries, in the past decade.