Octaviar: Kerr considering fresh tilt at Barnett and Fletcher

RSM Bird Cameron's David Kerr

HAVING recently secured a $12.35 million settlement from Fortress Credit Corporation, Octaviar Limited's (OL) special purpose liquidator is, we are reliably informed, contemplating resurrecting a $515 million proof of debt claim against the liquidators of Octaviar Administration (OA).

The NSW Supreme Court made orders on May 26, 2015, discontinuing proceedings first brought by OL's receivers against Bentleys partners Kate Barnett and Bill Fletcher in 2014.

The orders made no directions as to costs and crucially, the defendants were prevented from raising any time bar defence, meaning Kerr is free to re-litigate the proof of debt adjudication issue at the heart of the dispute.

In their statement of claim, PPB as OL's receivers had argued that at the date of OA's winding up on October 3, 2008 it owed OL, OA's ultimate holding company, $514,685,948.12c.

Barnett and Fletcher's defence listed multiple grounds showing why OA's debt should be offset, along with counter claims they argued meant OA's parent owed it money.

When contacted by SiN yesterday, Kerr declined to confirm or deny he was reviving the claim, saying only that he was unable to assist "at this time".