A bitter family dispute over the ownership and sale of a fishing vessel has ended with the High Court dismissing a son’s claim against his mother.

On January 26, Justice Frank Seepersad dismissed Robert Auerbach Jr’s claim to ownership of the vessel Dilligaf, ruling that he failed to prove any legal or beneficial entitlement to the boat.

In delivering his decision, the judge found that the claimant’s case rested largely on allegations rather than documentary proof, and that the evidence supported the defence’s position that the vessel belonged to his deceased father’s company and, after his death, to his widow, Margaret Auerbach.