Port of Spain, Trinidad – The former executive chairman of CL Financial (CLF) and CLICO director, Lawrence Duprey, has been ordered by the High Court to reimburse more than US$139 million to the companies for facilitating a deal to sell shares in what was then called CLICO Energy to Proman Holdings (Barbados) Ltd in February 2009.
The order was handed down on Friday by Justice Devindra Rampersad in the multi-million-dollar claim brought by CL Financial and CLICO.
It was also ruled that 17 per cent of the US$139.4-million that Duprey was directed to pay is to be held in trust for Colonial Life Insurance Company (Trinidad) Ltd, one of the claimants in the matter.
In October 2021, Justice Rampersad had found that Duprey acted oppressively, unfairly and with prejudices to the companies by selling the shares.
CL Financial and CLICO together owned a majority 51 per cent stake in CLICO Energy, which was sold to Proman Holdings on February 3, 2009 for US$46.5 million.
In his October 2021 ruling the judge did not immediately make an assessment of the money to be paid by Duprey to the companies but instead invited submissions from attorneys representing the various sides to file submissions on the issue.
While Justice Rampersad had ruled against Duprey, the former CL Financial chairman did not appeal the findings of the judge.
Duprey did not file an appeal so this was what cleared the way for the judge to deliver the order. (CMC)