It was an expletive-ridden stoush as Wellington’s Matt Ryan and Auckland’s Laurence Pope, both property moguls, faced off arguing repayment terms on a half million dollar loan. Pope did not repay a six month twenty per cent bridging loan as promised; Ryan was no more than a disappointed unsecured creditor with no right to security over properties owned by Pope, the High Court ruled.
In early 2024, Mr Pope’s Samcro Trust was in dire financial straits. The court was told he was under considerable pressure from both suppliers and Inland Revenue. In addition, he desperately needed $210,000 cash to settle his purchase of a property on Auckland’s North Shore at Glendu Road.
In a brief exchange of emails, Mr Ryan arranged for his Lifestyle Loans Ltd to advance $550,000 against Mr Pope’s promise to repay out of a planned rapid on-sale of Glendhu Road.
Mr Ryan was apoplectic after learning Glendhu Road was resold within six weeks and that Mr Pope had failed to pay down his earlier loan from the net $391,000 received on sale.
A barrage of expletive-filled emails and texts followed.
Mr Ryan’s Lifestyle Loans then sued, claiming Mr Pope fraudulently used the net proceeds to buy further properties.
Lifestyle Loans claimed an interest in these properties as beneficiary under a constructive trust, lodging caveats on title to two properties subsequently purchased by Mr Pope.
Lifestyle needed to prove there was a common intention that it would share an ownership interest in properties owned by Mr Pope, Associate Judge Cogswell said.
There was no such intention, he ruled.
Lifestyle Loans stands simply as an unsecured creditor with Mr Pope personally liable to repay the loan, he said.
Judge Cogswell ordered removal of the remaining caveat on a Glen Eden property.
Earlier, a second caveat, over a property in Ranui, was removed by agreement so the property could be sold. Lifestyle Loans received nothing from this sale, the court was told.
Lifestyle Loans Ltd v. Pope – High Court (5.08.25)
25.173