PAY US$122M

A HIGH Court judge has ordered former executive chairman of CL Financial Lawrence Duprey to repay British American Insurance Company (BAICO) a US$122 million debt. Justice Ricky Rahim made the order yesterday in the Hall of Justice, Port of Spain.

Duprey was not in court but in an immediate reaction, his attorney Vivek Lakhan-Joseph said, “Our client has expressed his respectful contention with the earlier High Court decision and is seriously considering the prospect of an urgent appeal, the strength and merits of which he is confident in. Mr Duprey has reiterated his unwavering commitment to exonerating himself from these matters with a view to ensuring his vindication.”

Last October, BAICO attorneys Andre Rudder and Bryan McCutcheon filed a claim for US$122,636,450, plus interest following a ruling by a Florida judge in July 2017, against Duprey and its former chairman Brian Branker, to pay damages in relation to the billion-dollar Green Island project in Osceola County, Florida.

BAICO invested US$295 million in the project which resulted in over US$100 million in losses. The application also noted Duprey had not appealed the Florida judgment and the time for doing so had elapsed.

The insurance company took Duprey and Branker to court claiming breach of fiduciary duty on their part by allowing it to pump billions 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.

Judge Erik P Kimball of the United States Bankruptcy Court in the South District of Florida ordered Duprey and Branker on July 31, 2017, to each pay BAICO US$61,318,225, a total of US$122,636,450. In November, the US court entered an “agreed order” on the basis that Duprey accepted liability. He was then ordered to repay BAICO US$122,636,450.

According to court proceedings, the loss incurred by BAICO and the Isle of Venice was the primary cause of the insolvency of both companies.

In his decision, Rahim said he was making no finding of fact, adding that the US court’s judgment could not be registered in TT since there was no reciprocal agreement between the countries to do so.

However, he dismissed Duprey’s defences, saying they disclosed no reasonable ground for defending the claim and ordered Duprey to pay to BAICO US$122,636,450.34. He also ordered Duprey to pay interest on that sum at 1.23 per cent from August 1 to September 29, 2017, amounting to US$247,960.82 as well as interest at 2.5 per cent from October 3 to September 27, 2018.

In his defence, Duprey denied non-compliance, saying he was unwell and could not, at the time, afford to hire lawyers to defend him in the US courts. He also said he found out about the US proceedings late and despite the alleged “agreed order,” he did not remember agreeing to accept liability. Duprey was represented by Vivek Lakhan-Joseph and Priya Ramsahai.