TRAMPOLINE PARK PAYOUT

Ex-owner ordered to cough up $1.6m to buyer

A FORMER owner of a Geelong trampoline park has been ordered to pay more than $1.6 million in compensation to a company that bought the failing business from him.

Darren Mathews and his organisation, Flightdeck Geelong Pty Ltd, was last week ordered to cough up after a ruling in the Federal Court of Australia.

Mr Mathews was the owner of the Airodrome Trampoline Park on Crown St, South Geelong, before he sold it in March 2015.

The business was bought for $1.52 million by All Options Pty Ltd after Mr Mathews had blatantly lied about its value and grossly exaggerated the profits he was making through the venture.

A previous court ruling found the trampoline park was worth only about $162,000 at the time of the sale.

Unsuspecting buyer Michael Nicholls was brought to the brink of financial ruin soon after taking on the business.

The trampoline park lost more than $78,000 in a twoyear period. It eventually shut down last October.

Justice Simon Steward on Friday ordered Mr Mathews and his company to pay a total of $1.66 million in compensation to All Options Pty Ltd.

Justice Steward said the amount included interest, along with damages stemming from losses incurred in 2016 and 2017.

“I have found that both respondents are principally liable to pay the damages I have found to be owing, and thus also both principally liable to pay interest,” he said. “The applicant will be entitled to recover all of the amount owing from either Mathews or Flightdeck or from both.

“In those circumstances, it is appropriate that I make an order that each respondent is jointly and severally liable to pay damages and interest.”

In a separate ruling earlier this year, Justice Steward found Mr Mathews acted improperly and deliberately misled Mr Nicholls during the sale process.

A business profile prepared by him contained profit forecasts for the Geelong site of $750,000 each year.

But an accounting expert later found the forecast should have been closer to $300,000.

“I … find that if the correct figures had been disclosed to Nicholls, he would not have procured the business,” Justice Steward said.

He said Mr Mathews had clear motivations to deceive Mr Nicholls.

“He personally stood to gain from the fact of the sale at the highest possible price,” Justice Steward said.

I … FIND THAT IF THE CORRECT FIGURES HAD BEEN DISCLOSED TO NICHOLLS, HE WOULD NOT HAVE PROCURED THE BUSINESS. JUSTICE SIMON STEWARD