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Civil LitigationFrance2023Representing a European Company in a $2M Contract Dispute
Matter Value
Successfully Resolved
$2M+
Successfully Resolved
Client Context
A French manufacturer of specialty industrial chemicals with annual revenue around €120M, operating across Europe and Southeast Asia. They had been doing business with a Vietnamese distributor for several years through a written supply agreement that included minimum-volume commitments and standard 60-day payment terms.
01
The Challenge
Over a 14-month period, the Vietnamese distributor began missing volume commitments and stretched payment terms beyond contract limits. By the time the client engaged our firm, outstanding invoices totalled USD 2.04M, the distributor had ceased communication for six weeks, and warehouse stock data suggested they had begun sourcing from a competitor in violation of the exclusivity provision. The client faced three distinct problems: a substantial bad debt, breach of an exclusive distribution arrangement that had real strategic value, and the practical question of whether to pursue recovery in Vietnam at all given the perceived complexity. They had received conflicting advice from two other firms about whether the case was even viable.
A further complication: the contract was signed in English, governed by Vietnamese law, and contained a Vietnam-court dispute resolution clause rather than arbitration. The supporting evidence — purchase orders, delivery receipts, email correspondence, internal communications about the breach — was held across three countries (France, Singapore, Vietnam) and required careful legalisation and translation before any court would accept it as evidence.
02
Our Approach
Our strategy combined aggressive procedural posture with deliberate openness to settlement. The first step was a comprehensive document collection across the client's France, Singapore, and Vietnam offices, with each foreign-language document independently certified-translated. We worked with the client's in-house counsel to authenticate signatures via apostille and prepared a complete evidentiary file before filing.
We filed a civil claim at the Provincial People's Court in Ho Chi Minh City for the full outstanding amount plus contractual interest and damages for breach of exclusivity. Simultaneously, we applied under Article 114 of the Civil Procedure Code for an interim asset freeze on the distributor's known bank accounts, which the court granted within ten days. The asset freeze fundamentally changed the dispute's centre of gravity: from a counterparty who had been ignoring our client to one who suddenly faced operational paralysis.
At the court-annexed mediation conference, we presented the evidence package and a structured settlement proposal that included a payment plan over twelve months, a contractual exclusivity reset, and replacement of the distributor's senior commercial team. The mediator and the court endorsed the framework, and a binding settlement was concluded that day.
03
The Outcome
The matter resolved at the first court-annexed mediation, eight months after engagement. Recovery: USD 1.88M of the USD 2.04M claimed (92%), paid in three tranches over twelve months. The asset freeze was lifted upon the second payment. The exclusivity arrangement was restored on revised commercial terms that gave the client greater oversight and remedies for any future breach. The business relationship continued for a further two years before the client elected to consolidate distribution under a single Singapore-based partner. Total client legal cost: under USD 80K including disbursements — a small fraction of the recovery and a fraction of the cost of full trial.
Lessons & Generalisable Insight
When a Vietnamese counterparty stops responding, the path back to the table is rarely email. A well-prepared filing with credible interim measures changes incentives in days. The exclusivity clause was at risk of being treated as commercially insignificant in negotiation; making it a separate damages claim in the filing forced full-value treatment. Most foreign clients are surprised at how quickly Vietnamese mediation can resolve a properly-pleaded matter — the procedure is far more responsive than the popular impression suggests.
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