Man, this flu’s not to be sniffed at

New Zealand rich listers Sir Owen Glenn and Eric Watson were good friends – or at least Glenn thought so. A court battle in London has revealed how for Watson, self interest came before the obligations of friendship. Martin van Beynen reports.

Owen Glenn was outraged. It was April 13, 2012, and Glenn, who was at a golf resort in the Caribbean’s Dominican Republic, had just received disturbing news. The news was a brutal reminder the wealth he had spent his life building was no longer in his full control.

Glenn, who started his career as a bank teller, had lived much of his life in the United States creating an empire in the transport and storage industry. He moved to Monaco in 2003 for tax reasons.

In January, 2012, he sold his business to the Egyptian Mansour family for $455 million, the proceeds going into his Corona Trust, based in Nevis, a Caribbean island regarded as one of the most secretive tax havens in the world.

Corona’s appointed ‘‘protector’’ was David Miller, an Australian accountant living in California who had worked with Glenn for 35 years and was regarded as a good friend. Miller appointed accountant Peter Dickson, a Bermuda resident, Corona’s trustee.

Unbeknown to Glenn, Dickson and Miller had altered the Corona trust deed in 2011 to limit Glenn’s powers and substantially increase their fees.

When an appalled Glenn found out, he emailed Miller in early 2012. ‘‘Let me remind you who made this money.’’

The news Glenn received in the Dominican Republic was that Dickson and Miller had rejected two projects Glenn put forward for investment. One was a film about the All Blacks 1905 Invincibles tour.

Glenn told Miller by email he was ‘‘flabbergasted and apoplectic’’ and would not let ‘‘little people like you two stand in my way’’.

On the same day, Glenn’s friend Eric Watson, a former butcher’s apprentice and fax paper salesman, arrived in the Dominican Republic at Glenn’s invitation, to play golf.

The two had known each other for about five years, during which Watson spent time on Glenn’s 34m yacht Ubiquitous and at his villa in Monaco. They met for lunches in London, at the Ascot races, and shared interests in rugby, golf and horses.

By the time of the golf trip, they had already sealed a joint venture in which Glenn had invested about $9.5m, and Watson and his associates were in the middle of negotiating other deals relating to Glenn’s capital.

The Dominican golf break lasted three days and Glenn confided in Watson about his difficulties with Miller and Dickson. By then, he had lost all confidence in them and felt tricked.

Glenn was sick and the stress sparked anxiety attacks. Watson offered his support. When Glenn came to London in May, Watson organised meetings for him, including with his own lawyers to look at Glenn’s options over the Corona Trust.

Glenn was grateful, sending Watson an email saying: ‘‘Many many thanks for all you have done to support me in this period of turmoil.’’

Watson replied: ‘‘We have and are a winning team.’’

Relations in the ‘‘winning team’’ soured. In May 2017, Watson and Glenn, armed with formidable legal contingents, were before Mr Justice Nugee, for the start of an eight week hearing in London’s High Court.

The hearing exposed a complex web of changing deals involving trusts, companies and limited partnerships in various sunny tax havens. Watson’s secretive and convoluted mode of business came under scrutiny, including his use of a Panamanian company set up by a Swiss firm.

Essentially, Glenn alleged Watson and his young consultant Miles Leahy misled Miller and Dickson into parting with about $250m of trust money and pursued a deal they knew was prevented by court orders. Watson argued Miller and Dickson were fully aware of all aspects of the dealings, and even if they weren’t, subsequent actions ‘‘affirmed’’ the agreements. He denied any deceptive or misleading behaviour.

Justice Nugee heard from all the parties, and his judgement delivered some damning pronouncements.

He described Watson as smooth and charming, and repeated Glenn’s description that he could ‘‘charm the socks off a kitty’’. Justice Nugee was convinced Watson had ‘‘resorted to deliberate deception’’ and recruited others to do so as well.

‘‘In these circumstances I do not regard his evidence as trustworthy and have approached it