Daniels and Findlay (No 4)

This decision concerned a dispute between Mr Daniels and Ms Findlay regarding the withdrawal of Westpac deposit monies. Ms Findlay admitted to authoring an email concerning these funds on behalf of directors, but her credibility regarding her non-involvement in the removal of the monies was questioned. The court noted that Ms Findlay had not disclosed the withdrawal of these monies when specific orders were made to restrain her from interfering with or moving funds from accounts held by A-P Pty Ltd.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether Ms Findlay had deliberately acted in contravention of existing court orders by attempting to divert Westpac deposit monies away from the agreed distribution to the parties. The court was also required to determine the appropriate amount of lost interest on these monies, as claimed by Mr Daniels.

The court found Ms Findlay's assertion that she was not behind the removal of the Westpac monies to be not credible, given her direct involvement and her failure to disclose the withdrawal when specific orders were in place. The court was satisfied that Ms Findlay retained complete access to the funds, which were likely located in Europe, and that her actions constituted a deliberate attempt to keep the monies outside the pool for distribution, contrary to the final orders. Mr Daniels' claim for lost interest of $5,350, calculated at a notional rate of 5 per cent from the maturity date of the deposit, was accepted as reasonable, particularly in light of evidence of comparable interest rates at the time.