A 13-year-old legal battle between two businessmen over control of a multi-million oil exploration company, Mora Ven Holdings Limited, ended yesterday.
Chief Justice Ivor Archie and Appellate Judges Gregory Smith and Judith Jones were due to hear an appeal of a High Court judge’s ruling in the case yesterday when attorneys representing businessmen George Nicholas and Dr Krishna Persad indicated that they had reached a settlement and no longer wished to pursue the case.
Details of the settlement were not revealed by both sets of attorneys during the brief hearing at the Hall of Justice, Port-of-Spain, yesterday.
Since 2002, Nicholas and Persad have been locked in a fierce legal battle over the two companies—Mora Ven Holdings Ltd (MVHL) and Mora Oil Ventures Ltd (MOVL)—with assets of well over $100 million.
Nicholas, then majority shareholder of both companies filed the lawsuit against Persad’s company, Krishna Persad and Associates (KPA), the companies minority shareholder, claiming that KPA had breached its fiduciary duties and had acted oppressively towards both companies.
The lawsuit centered around an operating agreement between MOVL and KPA in December 1994, which resulted in the latter being appointed operator of the exclusive licence to search for, bore and get petroleum in the submarine area known as the Mora Field.
Nicholas seized the oil platform being operated by KPA and took control on October 11, 2002.
In a counter-claim KPA and Persad also alleged acts of wrongdoing by MOVL, MVHL and Nicholas.
Former High Court Judge Sebastian Ventour had to temporarily resign as Integrity Commission vice chairman in February last year to deliver his judgment in the case, which remained outstanding since he left the Judiciary.
After analysing evidence from over two dozen witness who testified over a six-year protracted trial, Ventour ruled in Nicholas favour as he said KPA had acted unfairly, oppressively and in an unfairly prejudicial manner in his handling of its agreement with the companies.
Ventour’s ruling led to KPA filing the appeal which was eventually withdrawn.
Nicholas, MVHL and MOVL were represented by Queen’s Counsel Andrew Mitchell and Keith Scotland while Senior Counsel Gilbert Peterson and Justin Phelps represented KPA and Persad.