Court freezes $9M mining windfall in Suhren bankruptcy fight

The Federal Court has frozen $9 million in proceeds from a Queensland mining deal after finding that Nick Cooper of Oracle Insolvency Services, trustee of bankrupt financier Frederik Suhren, had a “serious case to be tried” over who truly owned the money. The trustee claims the funds trace back to shares Suhren helped secure in Wolfram Limited—later sold to Indonesian giant PT Bumi Resources—arguing they either vested in him as bankruptcy trustee or unjustly enriched the F & L Trust, now controlled by Gibraltar Capital.

Justice Jackson agreed both claims under ss 58 and 139E of the Bankruptcy Act were arguable and refused to lift the injunction, citing the risk the proceeds would “soon be transferred out of Australia” if released. Gibraltar’s pleas about an overseas investment deal failed to shift the balance, which the Court said was anchored by undertakings from Cooper and his litigation funder, Clover Risk Funding, to compensate any loss.

Read the decision here.

Lloyd Wicks of Bar Chambers (instructed by Charlton Rowley) acted for the trustee, while David Williams SC of 9 Wentworth Chambers and Jane Buncle of Omnia Chambers (instructed by Gadens) acted for Gibraltar.