Landmark East VAs forced to seek validation

Being prevented from giving effect to the DoCA you’ve nailed your colours to might be cause for some discontented thumb twiddling but when the possibility arises that you were never validly appointed it’s all hands to the pumps.

As iNO reported last week KPT Restructuring partners Ozem Kassem and Jason Tang have had little to do in regard to the deed of company arrangement (DoCA) they recommended Landmark East creditors accept at the second meeting of the Company on February 4 because shortly afterwards a creditor obtained injunctions preventing the pair from making any distributions or otherwise giving effect to the deed, a deed which Tang had pushed through at the meeting as chairman wielding the casting vote.

On another front however the pair have exhibited an understandable zeal, with a court on Monday hearing that they want their application to have their appointments validated heard as soon as possible.

The validation application was filed early last month, though the pair referred to concerns about whether one of their appointors was himself validly appointed to the Landmark East board as far back as November 2024.

Those concerns had been brought to Kassem and Tang’s attention by solicitors for one of Landmark’s major shareholders, Zhong Xin Investments Limited and included in the administrators’ Report to Creditors dated November 22, 2024.

Shortly after incumbent director Sam Fayad – he of Dyldam notoriety – had been forced in November 2023 to resign due to bankruptcy ASIC received notice advising of the appointment of Sam Fayad’s son Remon Fayad effective from September 1, 2023.

According to Kassem and Tang’s report “Concerns have been raised by the Zhong Xin Solicitors and Zhong Xin Directors with respect to the legitimacy of Mr R. Fayad’s appointment as a director & secretary of the Company, stating that no director or shareholder meetings were convened in relation to Mr R. Fayad’s appointment,” Kassemand Tang said.

“Enquiries have been made with Mr R. Fayad’s solicitor to obtain evidence in support of Mr R. Fayad appointment to the Company, however as at the date of this report we are yet to receive a response.”

Whilst Kassem and Tang advised creditors of the concerns and noted that they had liaised with their lawyers Dentons in respect of them, the failure of Remon Fayad to provide them with the evidence required to assuage those concerns some five months later perhaps explains the urgency propelling to their own validation efforts.

Further reading:

Landmark deed administrators injuncted