Having lost control of Weiti Bay development north of Auckland, Taiwanese investor Tong-Kuang Liu failed in legal arguments that he still had part-ownership of the project now taken over by interests associated with fellow investor, Auckland lawyer Evan Williams.
Development of the 900 hectare project at Weiti Bay, thirty minutes north of Auckland, has been through a long gestation. In 2005, Liu family interests teamed up with Mr Williams. Paying five million dollars for an option, Williams’ company put forward a development scheme which would see the Liu family receiving between $155 million and $295 million, the final figure dependent upon how the project developed. It was not straight-forward; Weiti Bay is bordered by marine reserve. Environmental issues have received wide publicity.
The High Court was told all co-operation between the two had fallen apart by early 2019, with the project only partly completed. Secured creditors called up their loan; just over twenty million dollars. Mr Williams bought the remaining 33 lots at a mortgagee sale. Mr Liu complained he had been robbed. He had wound up paying the project debt, while Mr Williams ended up with the remaining land, he complained. Legal action has been filed by the Liu family against Mr Williams plus his companies alleging they were in a joint venture and that Mr Williams broke terms of the joint venture when he bought in at the mortgagee sale. In turn, Mr Williams alleges the Liu family tried to get paid ahead of secured creditors, with a mortgagee sale precipitated by Liu family intransigence.
Liu family registered caveats over the Weiti Bay land now owned by Mr Williams companies, bringing legal issues to a head. Associate judge Andrew ordered removal of the Liu caveats. Mr Williams purchase of Weiti Bay in a mortgagee sale was not challenged. Liu family no longer had any interest in the land. Any complaint Liu family has against Mr Williams and his companies is a claim for damages against them personally, he said. This issue has yet to be heard in court.
Green & McCahill Holdings Ltd v. Ara Weiti Developments Ltd – High Court (24.02.21)
21.038