Yan's second bid to stall liquidation fails

Richard Yan is the sole director of Richina Global Real Estate. File Photo

Mainzeal director Richard Yan's second bid to stall the liquidation of a company related to the collapsed construction business has been rejected by the Court of Appeal today.

Richina Global Real Estate, whose sole director is Yan, was put into liquidation on February 27 by Justice Brendan Brown after an application by BDO, the liquidators of Mainzeal Property and Construction.

Mainzeal, whose former board members included ex-Prime Minister Jenny Shipley, was a building business which collapsed in 2013 leaving 2000 unsecured creditors claiming around $93.5 million.

Following the court order last month, BDO was also appointed liquidator for Richina Global Real Estate (RGREL).
Yan has filed an attempt to overturn the RGREL liquidation order with the Court of Appeal.

Pending that appeal, Yan also tried to put the liquidation on hold and made an urgent bid in the High Court.

This was rejected by Justice Brendan Brown. Yan then went to the Court of Appeal, who heard his second bid to put on a stay on the liquidation, which effectively would put it on hold.

The grounds advanced by Yan's lawyer for the stay was that wider appeal would be rendered nugatory if it was not granted.

A main concern was that BDO, RGREL's liquidators, were also liquidators of other companies in the collapsed Mainzeal group.

"As liquidators they will have access to RGREL's documents and staff. Further, the liquidators could seek to recover intercompany debts not otherwise due and owing," the Court of Appeal judgement summarised.

The stay was opposed by BDO's lawyers and Justices Christine French, Ellen France and Mark Cooper declined to grant it in a decision released today.

The three judges said Yan had other avenues to protect his interests than the stay.

"To stop the liquidation altogether in the context of the present proceeding to protect these concerns would be an unduly blunt response given that other, more tailored, remedies are available," the Justices said.