Pandey family’s bid to eject liquidator successful

Continued from page 2 The Rich List Pandey family owns a string of hotels around the country, including Auckland’s Pullman, several Mercures, and a chunk of the former Westin hotel in the Viaduct Harbour.

Waterstone Insolvency was appointed to the NZ Properties liquidation but, at a creditors’ meeting in August, a group of Pandey-related companies voted to have Waterstone replaced.

The liquidators opposed the move in the High Court, but this week lost their bid.

Waterstone argued that appointing the proposed replacement practitioners Meltzer Mason Heath would ‘‘deny access to justice to Mr and Mrs Lawrence’’.

It was prepared to continue working on the liquidation without taking any fees, the firm said.

The Lawrences told the court that the primary objective of the Pandey interests was to prevent Waterstone from continuing a vigorous investigation into the affairs of NZ Properties.

But the Pandey companies argued that Waterstone was approaching the liquidation ‘‘as a debt-recovery exercise for [the Lawrences] without proper regard to their obligations’’.

In his decision this week, Justice Geoffrey Venning allowed the replacement of Waterstone.

‘‘It is difficult to see that any prejudice to [the Lawrences] as a result of the appointment of the proposed liquidators would be unreasonable.’’ Any prejudice was largely hypothetical and speculative at this stage, he said.

He criticised Waterstone for taking a ‘‘confrontational approach’’ to the liquidation.

Waterstone principal Damien Grant said he was considering appealing.

‘‘The decision is a surprise and the finding that I had been confrontational is disappointing professionally and not, in my view, supported by the evidence.’’

As it appeared to be the first time the court had looked at the question of whether the votes of related parties at a creditors’ meeting could be set aside, it might be appropriate to let the Court of Appeal give its view, he said.

A year ago, Justice Peter Woodhouse ordered NZ Properties and another company that owned the Lakewood Rotorua during the relevant period, Capital Hospitality Holdings, to pay the Lawrences an aggregate sum of $1.8m for loss of income, loss of capital, legal fees, penalty interest and costs, all plus interest.

Since then, the couple has seen no money.

The Lawrences also had Capital Hospitality liquidated in March with Waterstone Insolvency as liquidator. The firm continues to handle that file.