High Court of Eastern Denmark allows OW Bunker’s bankruptcy estate to raise claim against Deloitte and Altor by DKK 800m (USD 117m). This is good news for a number of pension providers, which have subpoenaed the estate.
Friday, the High Court of Eastern Denmark has approved that the bankruptcy estate after bunker firm OW Bunker can raise a compensation claim against private equity group Altor and accounting firm Deloitte by DKK 800m (USD 117m), according to Danish media Børsen.
The case is one of three, in which the insolvency administrator of the bankrupt company attempts to secure money for the creditors. Two of the cases have been rejected by the High Court of Eastern Denmark. One of the verdicts has even been approved by the Supreme Court of Denmark.
The rejected cases have been filed after the case that reached a verdict Friday. With the raised compensation claim, the bankruptcy estate has the opportunity to bring in some of the money the company failed to secure in relation to the other cases.
Friday’s verdict is a partial decision. The court has only decided whether administrator Søren Halling-Overgaard could increase the original claim.
Main question remains unanswered
The case’s main question remains whether the defendants have compensation liability at all. And if so, the size of the compensation has to be determined.
However, the verdict has to be bad news for Deloitte and Altor, which owned and – in 2014 – listed OW Bunker, whereupon the bunker firm went bankrupt with a major debt after only eight months.
The bankruptcy estate has previously subpoenaed Deloitte, Altor and OW Bunker’s former management.
On the other hand, Friday’s decision must be good news for the consortium of 24 pension providers and institutional investors, which in 2016 and 2017 subpoenaed Altor, issue houses Morgan Stanley and Carnegie, the management and board of OW Bunker as well as the bankruptcy estate after the company.
If the bankruptcy estate succeeds in making Altor liable to compensation, the estate will be able to add cash to its coffers.
The compensation struggle in OW Bunker
Source: Press releases by the investor consortium
”In light of the Supreme Court’s verdict in the parallel case a month ago, we are surprised by the ruling of the High Court,” writes Deloitte’s press office to WPO.
Deloitte now seeks to test the high court’s verdict in before the Supreme Court.
”We note that the ruling was made with dissent, and we will now, alongside our attorneys, seek permission to appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court,” states Deloitte in its written response.
