An application to the High Court at Dunedin by Maniototo farmer Ewan Carr to have former business partner Rodney Humphries placed in bankruptcy over claims of a $283,000 debt will be heard next year.
The pair have been mired in numerous legal battles over ownership of assets and debts surrounding the ambitious Big Sky Dairy Farm project near Patearoa, which was placed receivership in March 2007.
Appearing before Judge Osborne in the High Court at Dunedin yesterday, Mr Carr agreed to a timetable laid out by the judge, that all evidence, affidavits and submissions be filed to the court by all parties by February 9; all subsequent submissions and replies by February 15 and a full day be set aside on March 9, in Dunedin, to hear the application.
In separate proceedings in July this year, Mr Carr and Mr Humphries had separate bankruptcy proceedings lodged against them by prominent Dunedin businessmen over historic debts totalling almost $560,000 for farm machinery.
The Otago Trustee Company Ltd, whose directors are Dunedin businessmen Alistair Broad and Greg Paterson, administers the estate of entrepreneurial Dunedin businessman Howard Paterson, who died in Fiji in July 2003.
Otago Trustee filed separate requests in July seeking bankruptcy notices against Mr Carr, claiming a debt of $269,000, and Mr Humphries, for a debt of $290,000.
The total original debt was held by UDC Finance for farm machinery and was assigned to Otago Trustee by order in November.
Sources, who declined to be identified, this week said the entire debt had since been taken over from Otago Trustee Company by Mr Carr.
He is now pursuing Mr Humphries for payment.
The original application in yesterday's proceedings named the Otago Trustee Company as making the application against Mr Humphries, but Judge Osborne had the application changed to Mr Carr's name, as it had become his personal application, not the company's.
The latest bankruptcy proceedings are just one of several legal moves spanning more than two years, following the $30 million receivership of Big Sky Dairy Farm.
It was placed in the hands of the Official Assignee for liquidation, on June 2.
The Big Sky dairy syndicate, formed in 2001, included Howard Paterson, Mr Humphries and Mr Carr, who has run the Patearoa farm since 1992.
Collectively, within the wider Big Sky Group of companies, Mr Carr has a one-third interest and Mr Humphries a two-thirds interest in each of Consultants Management Services Ltd, Big Sky Dairy Farms Ltd, Cascade Capital Ltd, Main Farm Ltd and Tercio Dairy Ltd.
The Patearoa farm was initially proposed in early 2001 as a super farm, running up to 6000 cows on 1600ha, using supplementary feed.
It prompted widespread criticism at the time.
The farm has been running 3000 cows on about 1300ha recently.
