An engineer and businessman has brought a High Court challenge over a financial fund’s appointment of a receiver over lands in Co Waterford.
Patrick Wheelock claims that Stephen Tennant, of Grant Thornton, was unlawfully and invalidly appointed early last month as receiver by Promontoria (Arrow) Ltd over his lands at Monvoy, Co Waterford.
Mr Wheelock claims that signatures on deeds of mortgage, which purport to charge his interest in the lands in favour of the now defunct Anglo Irish Bank over the lands, are not his signatures and are forgeries.
Mr Wheelock, represented by Jim O’Callaghan SC and Padraic Lyons, claims the alleged forged signatures render the deeds of mortgage void, invalid and without legal effect.
Mr Wheelock, a piping design engineer of Moneyhore, Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, intends to develop the lands at Monvoy, the court also heard.
Mr O’Callaghan told the court on Tuesday his client never agreed to mortgage or charge the lands in favour of Anlgo and was entirely unaware of the purported charges until 2014.
Mr Wheelock had in 2014 sued his former accountant and financial advisor, whom, he claimed, engaged in an elaborate fraud and misappropriated €7.9m from him.
It was also claimed the accountant falsified Mr Wheelock’s signature on several documents, and letters incLuding on deeds of mortgage, dated 2003 and 2008, purportedly creating a security interest in favour of Anglo over the Monvoy lands.
In that action, the accountant claimed Mr Wheelock had authorised him to sign documents on his behalf.
Mr O’Callaghan told the court that was “vehemently denied” by his client.
Counsel said the action against the accountant was settled in 2017 without any judicial determination being made about the alleged falsification of documents.
Mr O’Callaghan said the purported mortgages made in favour of Anglo in 2003 and 2008 were acquired by Nama and it was made aware of the allegations concerning the false signatures in 2014.
Counsel said Nama sold the mortgages to Promontoria in 2017 and the fund was also informed of the allegations concerning the alleged false signatures on the deeds.
Promontoria has brought proceedings seeking judgment against Mr Wheelock and those are currently before the Commercial Court, counsel said.
Promontoria’s decision to appoint a receiver was an attempt to leapfrog the commercial court proceedings, he submitted.
When the purported mortgages were held by Nama, it had appointed a statutory receiver over the Monvoy lands but, when issues over the alleged forged signatures were made known to Nama, that receiver was stood down, counsel said.
As a result of the receiver’s appointment, and refusal to given undertakings not to dispose of the property, Mr Wheelock wanted orders preventing the receiver selling the lands at Monvoy.
Mr Justice Tony O ‘Connor granted the ex parte (one side only represented) application for permission to serve short notice of the proceedings on Mr Tennant and Promontoria and returned the matter to Friday.
