Carters wins $ 1 million court judgment against former Bella Vista Homes principal Danny Cancian

Former Bella Vista Homes director Danny Cancian says he will appeal a judgment of more than a million dollars against him.

Construction supplies company Carters sued the developer for unpaid bills of $ 1.078 million accrued by Bella Vista Homes, which is in liquidation following the failure of its subdivision in The Lakes, Tauranga.

READ MORE: Bella Vista’s Danny Cancian is sued by Carters for $ 1 million

The case, which had been creeping through the legal system since late 2017, was heard in the Tauranga High Court last month, and Cancian defended himself.

Carters, a division of Carter Holt Harvey, argued that Cancian was personally liable for his old company’s bill because he signed a personal guarantee for a business line of credit.

Cancian, however, argued that Carters led him to believe that his liability would be limited to $ 50,000 and that the credit limit was raised without his knowledge.

In his reserved decision, Judge Edwin Wylie said he found aspects of Cancian’s evidence “selfish” and “uncorroborated” and that his version of events made “little business sense.”

“Why did Carters agree to extend a credit limit to Bella Vista of $ 800,000, if the liability of Mr. Cancian, as its sole director, was limited to $ 50,000?”

He said Cancian’s evidence in court that he did not read or verify the warranty and indemnity deed, relying on Carters’ representative, was “implausible.”

The judge also found discrepancies in the evidence Cancian presented.

“I was left with the clear impression that Mr. Cancian was making things up as he went along.

“I was surprised that Mr. Cancian was trying to hold on to whatever straws passed by in an effort to back up his argument.”

Judge Wylie said that a piece of Cancian’s evidence was, in his opinion, “fabricated” and Cancian “did not attack. [him] as a credible witness. “

“The evidence from Mr. Cancian in general did not impress me. It gave me the impression that he was seeking to attribute the blame for the final collapse of Bella Vista to other people / entities, and to distance himself from any responsibility for what happened.

A judgment was issued in favor of Carters and against Cancian for the amount of $ 1,078 million, plus interest.

Cancian told the Bay of Plenty Times that he had filed an appeal against the sentence today.

The former mayoral candidate, who has said he is considering a career in the recently vacant seat on the Tauranga City Council, spent more than a month in court earlier this year fighting the Building Law charges brought by the council for the failed development in Lakes.

Judge Paul Mabey’s reserved decision in that case has yet to be published.