HFW wins appeal in PPE masks case

Successfully overturning excessive claims valued at over $40 million related to PPE contracts filed by Advanced Multi-Technology for Medical Industry, known as Hitex, a Jordanian manufacturer of face masks, along with their agents Caramel Ltd and David Popeck. The dispute arose from a contract for Uniserve to secure 80 million PPE face masks during the Covid pandemic. Hitex alleged damages for non-acceptance of these masks, while Caramel and Mr Popeck sought unpaid commission from Uniserve.

Despite an initial ruling in favour of Hitex that amounted to about $17 million, the Court of Appeal, presided over by Lords Justices Males, Stephen Phillips and Snowden, delivered a decisive judgment on 2 October 2025, allowing Uniserve's appeal and dismissing Hitex's claim. The Court also rejected Caramel and Mr Popeck’s appeal regarding their commission. The judges highlighted that it was erroneous for the trial judge to resolve the case based on unpleaded issues, labelling it a "mistake" for him to arrive at conclusions not advanced by the parties.

Citing precedents from previous cases, the Court of Appeal ruled that Uniserve had the right to terminate the contract due to Hitex's failure to provide sufficient masks for scheduled shipments in June and July 2020. The ruling clarified that even if Uniserve’s right to terminate were not valid, Hitex had not fulfilled its obligations to manufacture and deliver the goods, thus negating their claims to damages under the Sale of Goods Act 1979.

An attempt by Hitex to claim damages based on specific shipments where it had adequate masks was swiftly refuted; the Court emphasised that this argument was not part of their original pleadings and was therefore inadmissible.

The HFW legal team, spearheaded by Andrew Williams, the Head of Commercial Disputes, with support from Gordon Rieck and Nicole Yeung, alongside counsel Luke Parsons KC, David Walsh KC and Edward Mourdant, celebrated this outcome. Sharing his thoughts on the judgment, Andrew Williams remarked, "This is a great result for our client and fully vindicates the hard work of the team over the last 5 years. It is pleasing to see that the Court of Appeal agreed with our arguments and dismissed the claims. It was clear from the outset that Hitex could not meet the delivery schedule and so these claims should never have been brought. The Claimants' failure to plead their damages claim properly is also a salutary lesson to seek specialist advice when dealing with commodities disputes"

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