In reference to the letter of the Waterloo Glass Bottle Works Limited, dated 21 July 1915, asking for advice as to a claim for the refund of money paid to Messrs Lohmann of Sydney as agents for the Norddeutscher Lloyd Company, the matter appears primarily to be one on which the claimants should seek the advice of their own solicitors. This Department cannot undertake to advise parties as to their rights, at any rate in matters where the Government has no power of acting, and where therefore no question arises as to the view of the law upon which Government action affecting the parties may be based.

It may however be observed that it has been held in England that the existence of war does not protect an alien enemy from actions, and in two cases the Court of Appeal has ordered that substituted service of the writ in such an action should be made on persons in England who had acted as the enemy's agents (Porter v. Freudenberg, Kreglinger v. Samuel 1915 W.N.43). There seems no reason to doubt that our courts in Australia would act upon the authority of these decisions. In England there has more recently been legislation⁽¹⁾ and rules thereunder dealing specifically with the matter (see Manual of Emergency Legislation, Supp. No. 3, pp. 241, 461).

[Vol. 14, p. 18]

(1)The legal proceedings against Enemies Act 1915 (Imp.).

See Preface.