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SCF civil claim dropped

Posted on 18 December, 2014

Crown Asset Management (CAM) has discontinued its civil claim against the former directors of South Canterbury Finance (SCF). But the government entity set up to wind down remaining assets of finance companies that used the retail deposit guarantee declines to say whether it has settled with the finance company’s former officers. Created to manage the assets of failing finance companies in 2008, CAM filed the civil claim against ex-SCF director Stuart Nattrass, Ed Sullivan, Bob White and Jean Hubbard as the executrix of her late husband Allan Hubbard’s estate in the High Court in Christchurch, with Vero Liability Insurance a third party to the proceedings, but has since ended it. General manager Sharon Burleigh confirms the claim has been discontinued and there are no others out there, but has declined to say whether the agency has reached a settlement with the parties. Sullivan was week sentenced to 12 months’ home detention and 400 hours’ community work. Sullivan and his co-accused, former chief executive Lachie McLeod and White, were acquitted of the major charges pursued by the Serious Fraud Office, involving SCF’s inclusion in the government retail deposit guarantee scheme. In sentencing, Justice Paul Heath said the Crown didn’t seek reparations as an independent sentence against Sullivan and “the information available to me suggests you have settled one civil claim against you for a substantial sum”. The Financial Markets Authority has decided against pursuing civil claims against SCF directors and officers saying it couldn’t justify the cost of doing so with CAM’s claim the best avenue for any recovery.