Wrangles drag on over Big Sky

Bitter legal wrangles continue over the $30 million receivership, and now liquidation, of Big Sky Dairy Farm near Patearoa in Central Otago - one of the country's most ambitious dairying projects.

Central to the complex and multiple court proceedings spanning more than two years are Ewan Carr of Patearoa and his estranged former Auckland-based business partner Rodney Humphries. Various courts have described the men as "warring parties" and their relationship as "acrimonious" and "dysfunctional".

In the latest legal decision, Justice Robert Dobson in the High Court at Wellington granted an application by Carr to have Big Sky Dairy Farms Ltd and Cascade Capital Ltd placed in the hands of the Official Assignee today for liquidation.

Carr has a one-third interest and 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 Big Sky Group".

The Patearoa farm was initially proposed as a super farm running up to 6000 cows on 1600ha using supplementary feed, prompting widespread criticism at the time. However, in recent times it has been running 3000 cows on about 1300ha.

The Big Sky dairy syndicate formed in 2001 included Dunedin businessman Howard Paterson, who died in July 2003, Humphries and Carr, who had been running the Patearoa farm since 1992. Estimates in August 2007 were that the four companies associated with the farm owed more than $30 million to a host of creditors.

The receivers at the time anticipated that preferential creditors owed $17.33 million - including the BNZ which forced the receivership - would be paid in full, but payment for unsecured creditors owed a total $12.52 million was dependent on the value of assets sold.

The farm was on the market for $20 million almost seven years ago but did not sell. In early May it was reported a conditional contract for the sale of Big Sky farm was still being negotiated.

Carr wanted Christchurch liquidators appointed while Humphries' counsel sought Dunedin liquidators. This prompted Justice Dobson to appoint the Official Assignee as liquidator as the agency was not "identified with either of the warring parties" and had the experience to conduct the liquidation in spite of "the highly charged and bitter divisions between the shareholding groups".Last month in the Dunedin District Court Humphries was discharged without conviction on a charge relating to the theft of a Mowzip flail mower in September 2007 belonging to Carr. Humphries, who has no previous convictions, was ordered to return the mower and to pay $500 court costs.