Company calls on Duprey for $60M

British American Insurance Company (BAICO) has filed an application in the High Court seeking to enforce a $60 million debt owed by former executive chairman of CL Financial Lawrence Duprey. The application was filed on Wednesday by attorneys for BAICO Andre Rudder and Bryan McCutcheon.

The claim is for the sum of US$122,636,450, plus interest. The application follows a ruling by a Florida judge in July against Duprey to pay more than US$60 million to BAICO in damages in relation to the TT$1.9 billion Green Island project in Osceola County, Florida. The application also noted that Duprey had not filed an appeal of the Florida judgment and the time for doing so has since elapsed.

The insurance company had taken Duprey and one of its former executives, chairman Brian Branker to court claiming a breach of fiduciary duties on their part by allowing it to pump billions of dollars into the real estate transaction which was executed by BAICO and British American Isle of Venice in January 2008 for the purchase price of US$295 million. Duprey and Branker were ordered by Judge Erik P Kimball of the United States Bankruptcy Court in the South District of Florida on July 31 to each pay BAICO US$61,318,225, a total of US$122,636,450. Court documents stated that the companies had pursued the land transaction that resulted in a loss allegedly exceeding $100 million.

This loss was a primary cause of the insolvency of the companies and their multi-national insolvency proceedings. The Florida Court found that the Motion for Judgment should be granted in part, ruling that Duprey and Branker shall be held liable for damages.