Chapter 76
Earlier the same afternoon, Riordan and Meredith were in the High Court in London. They were sitting in front of the old judge who had frozen Plantation’s bank accounts – at Vincent Wheeler’s request. This time, they would have their say.
Before Ashby had left for Athens, he’d signed an affidavit saying that what Wheeler had told the judge was wrong or even fabricated.
This was a serious accusation to make. If Wheeler had got his freezing Order by misleading the judge or the information he’d given the court was so inaccurate as to be wrong, he would be in hot water with the court, the Law Society, his partners and Plantation. For Wheeler, this was literally the moment of truth.
Having read what Ashby had to say, the judge felt that his original warnings to Wheeler about shooting from the hip, had proved correct. Unless Wheeler had a good explanation to offer, he was close to being reported for professional misconduct.
As for Wheeler himself, he’d also read what Ashby had said in advance of the hearing and had decided to bluff his way out. How was he to know that what Grenville had told him was wrong ? Accustomed as he was to behaving arrogantly towards the opposition (and his clients and everyone who worked for him), he decided to launch a head-on attack. This, as Machiavelli had suggested, was the best form of defence. There seemed no doubt that Plantation was insolvent : from what he’d been told by various brokers and underwriters, it was teetering on the point of collapse. He sat in the court, ready to launch his assault and to persuade the judge to ignore Plantation’s complaints.
“You will have seen my Lord,” began Riordan, “that what Mr Wheeler told your Lordship last week was completely incorrect.” He was careful not to say it was ‘false’ – that would have meant Wheeler was a liar. He would leave the judge to make his own conclusions. “Plantation’s accounts were not approved by Mr Ashby, nor his deceased father. In fact, they were prepared solely by the Finance Director, Mr Roger Grenville on his own initiative and were not shown to Mr Ashby at all. Consequently, my Lord, the transfers made by Plantation to its offshore company in the Cayman Islands pre-dated his arrival back in this country from the United States almost one month ago, after the death of his father. They were made by Mr Grenville. Secondly, my Lord, those transfers were to an overseas company owned and operated by Plantation and within its complete control. They were able to be brought back to this country at any time and as Mr Ashby has said, that has already happened and the funds are at this moment, in its bank account in London. There was no question at all that they were being hidden or misused : they were sent offshore for investment purposes and to pay claims in the United States in US dollars. Altogether, my Lord, it was the grossest behaviour of Marlowe & Co and their client, Caspian Ltd to ask the court to freeze Plantation’s bank accounts – which have caused it very serious harm – as there was no intention to hide or misdirect any of its assets from potential creditors. Marlowe’s actions were a contemptible tactic to force Plantation to pay its client’s claim which is already being arbitrated but is yet to be decided. It was also a flagrant misuse of the court’s emergency powers. As for all the gossip and innuendo misreported by the press and the talk of Plantation being insolvent, you will see, my Lord from what Mr Ashby says that these are also false and are part of the rumour-mongering which has damaged the company recently following the death of its founder, Mr James Ashby. I would therefore ask the court to consider whether a penalty should be imposed on Marlowe & Co for the damage which it has caused through the misuse of the court’s powers and that the freezing Order be removed forthwith.”
Everyone waited to hear from Wheeler’s barrister who had been drafted in at short notice to draw the attack away from Marlowes if the case went the wrong way. Although Wheeler was often high-handed towards his opponents and the court, he used only the best and most expensive advocates. However, before his mouthpiece could say anything, the judge looked across the court to the malefactor himself.
“If what has been said by Mr Ashby is correct, there will be serious consequences to follow which I warned of at last week’s hearing. What explanation have you to offer, Mr......I’m sorry, I don’t appear to have a note of your name.”
At which point, there was a furious scramble by Wheeler’s clerk to find the note which the judge should have had, but didn’t, only to be beaten by the anonymous advocate announcing his name as Prentice.
“My Lord. It is reprehensible in the extreme for Robert Ashby to say that he knew nothing about the accounts – when, clearly it was his absolute duty to know about them and approve them as Managing Director of the company. It matters not one whit that his father died or that he has only been in the country for a fortnight. The Companies Act places a heavy responsibility on directors and he was under a clear obligation to know what the company was doing at all times. Ashby himself says that he ignored that responsibility and breached that duty. It is gross incompetence for the company’s principal officer to handle its affairs in this way. No doubt Plantation’s shareholders will be considering what action to take against Ashby personally. Now, as to the company’s solvency, there is a very huge question mark which is once again a responsibility of its Managing Director, Robert Ashby to clarify. The present situation is fraught with confusion. There has been no clarification given to any satisfactory degree at all. I must say that I find this an astounding state of affairs to exist in what is supposedly one of the London market’s largest reinsurers. Last week, the company’s board announced that it had appointed a liquidator – only to be overridden by Ashby denying that that had happened at all. The entire situation is in utter chaos, my Lord. I am informed by those instructing me that Plantation’s shareholders are unaware of the current position and that its membership of the LRE is under review. Clearly, Plantation is in a crisis and where is its principal director at this very moment ? Not even in the country, my Lord. My friend here has said that Ashby is in Athens collecting evidence for an appeal against last week’s judgment when Plantation was ordered to pay twenty million pounds. If the appeal is rejected – which we understand is highly likely, will Plantation be insolvent after paying that claim which it has disputed for over two years, as it has disputed the claim by Caspian ? In summary, my Lord, it is....”
“Thank you, Mr Prentice. Having listened to both of the parties, there is no doubt that the original request for Plantation’s accounts and assets to be frozen – should never have been made at all. At the time, I warned those bringing the application that it needed to be ‘true and complete in every particular’. This was not the case and the Order need not have been made by me when Plantation should have been present to put its version of events which it was prevented from doing. The company’s accounts merely demonstrated that although the funds were offshore, they were still within the direct control of the company and capable of being produced at any time, if necessary. This is directly the opposite of what Marlowe & Co said last week. They complained that the funds had been purposefully sent out of the country to avoid creditors getting their hands on the money and that it had disappeared altogether. The result was that Plantation whose business is already under a great deal of strain, was forced to endure an absence of funds when this should never have happened. I will be sending a note of the matter to the Law Society which may consider some form of action against Mr Vincent Wheeler, the solicitor bringing the application and I order that Marlowe & Co compensate Plantation for any losses resulting from the freezing Order. Marlowe & Co must also pay Plantation’s full and unaudited legal costs. And let me say finally...” and the judge stared directly at Wheeler when saying this, “this type of tactic achieves nothing. It only serves to draw out the time and expense involved in deciding who has been at fault. And that is why, when this type of Order is misused, those who do so must answer the consequences.”
The following day, The Times newspaper carried a summary of the case : Wheeler had created his own precedent which lawyers were recommended to heed by not fo
llowing his example. And there were many around the City law firms and across the entire country – even in other countries such as Bill Waterford, who read the report with an undisguised but pleasurable malice.
Plantation A Legal Thriller Page 76