Elias one step closer to getting his $55M

Emile Elias.
Emile Elias.

UPDATED:

Local contractor Emile Elias, who recently resigned as chairman of state-owned TSTT, has moved one step closer to recovering a $55 million debt owed to him by a company owned by Finance Minister Colm Imbert for work done on the Grenada National Stadium project in 1997.

A High Court judge yesterday gave Elias’ company NH International permission to enforce the award made in 2001.

Justice Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell, in the Port of Spain High Court yesterday, granted permission to NH to enforce the judgement on the funds which are being held in escrow at the Unit Trust Corporation (UTC).

On January 28, 2001, Justice Peter Rajkumar ordered Imbert’s National Stadium (Grenada) Project to pay the debt owed to Elias’ company.

Rajkumar made the order after delivering a 108-page ruling in the legal battle between Elias and Imbert, which had been waged in the local, regional and international courts over the controversial Grenada project.

Elias had accused Imbert of reneging on a contractual agreement and of refusing to pay millions owed to him. He filed a lawsuit against ICS (Grenada) Ltd, Clico Investment Bank (CIB) and the National Stadium Project (Grenada) Corporation (NS) – a company Imbert was said to have formed to hold the lease on the stadium.

The lawsuit sought payment of a debt of $17 million (estimated to be worth $55 million when added to interest), representing part of a sum set aside by CIB years ago to pay NH for work on the stadium project.

NH had applied to the court to have the money taken out of CIB and put into the Unit Trust Corporation (UTC), since there were early suggestions of CIB’s instability in 2009. High Court Judge Justice Joseph Tam, froze the $17 million at CIB, and ordered that it be transferred to the UTC. Elias’ lawyers argued that the money held by CIB – which has been wound up – could not be considered part of the bank’s assets because it was held in trust.

The Court of Appeal, in July this year dismissed an application by NS for a stay of execution. In its ruling, Justices of Appeal Nolan Bereaux, Judith Jones and Andre des Vignes held there was no risk of injustice to NS in satisfying the judgment debt.

National Stadium has also appealed Rajkumar’s ruling and hearing for this has been fixed for sometime in May.

In its ruling, delivered by Justice Jones, the Court of Appeal held that a successful litigant (in this case Elias) was entitled to the fruits of such success, unless NS can show there was a risk of injustice.

Representing NH were attorneys Alvin Fitzpatrick,SC, Shiv Sharma and Lesley-Ann Lucky-Samaroo, while Senior Counsel Deborah Peake appeared for NS and attorney Kerwyn Garcia represented the UTC.

ORIGINAL STORY:

A High Court judge has given contractor Emile Elias, who recently resigned as chairman of state-owned TSTT, permission to enforce a $55 million judgment against a company owned by Finance Minister Colm Imbert for work done on the Grenada National Stadium project back in 1997.

Justice Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell yesterday granted Elias’ company, NH (International), leave to enforce the judgement on the funds, which are being held in escrow at the Unit Trust Corporation.

On January 28, 2001, a court ordered Imbert’s National Stadium (Grenada) Project to pay the debt owed to Elias’ company.

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