Appearances: M D Arthur and J Marcetic for the Applicants
First Respondent in person (via VMR)
No appearance for the Second or Third Respondents MC Harris and JLW Wass for Kea Investments Ltd
F C Monteiro and J L Schwarcz for MK Solicitors LP

Judgment: 18 July 2025

Reasons: 22 September 2025

JUDGMENT OF GAULT J

(Application for directions)

This judgment was delivered by me on 22 September 2025 at 4:00 pm pursuant to r 11.5 of the High Court Rules 2016.
Registrar/Deputy Registrar
……………………………………

GIBSON and JACKSON v WIKELEY [2025] NZHC 2762 [18 July 2025]

Continued …

BETWEEN WIKELEY FAMILY TRUSTEE LIMITED
(in interim liquidation) Second Applicant

AND WILLIAM WIKELEY
Second Respondent
OLIVER WIKELEY
Third Respondent

[1] At the conclusion of the hearing of this application for directions on 18 July 2025, I made orders with reasons to follow.

[2]The orders were:

1directing that Brendon James Gibson and Neale Jackson, as interim liquidators of Wikeley Family Trustee Ltd (in interim liquidation) (WFTL), and WFTL as trustee of the Wikeley Family Trust, may properly and justifiably refrain from seeking to enforce or act on, anywhere in the world, the default judgment obtained in January 2022 in the Commonwealth of Kentucky Circuit Court by WFTL against Kea Investments Ltd;

2reserving leave for the parties to seek further orders or directions from the Court if there is a change of circumstances; and

3directing the parties to confer and file a memorandum or memoranda in respect of timetabling the process for determining the remainder of the Application, and to attend any subsequent conference for the same purpose.

[3]These are my reasons.

Background

[4] This proceeding is an originating application for directions by the interim liquidators of WFTL. It forms part of a wider dispute concerning the January 2022 default judgment in the Commonwealth of Kentucky in the proceeding Wikeley Family Trustee Ltd v Kea Investments Ltd (the Default Judgment).1 It is unnecessary to set out the wider background in detail. It is recorded in earlier judgments of this Court and the Court of Appeal in proceedings brought by Kea Investments Ltd (Kea).2

[5] It suffices to mention four aspects of Kea’s related proceedings. First, following initial judgments granting interim relief and dismissing a protest to jurisdiction, the interim liquidators were appointed on 6 April 2023 when

1 Fayette Circuit Court, 9th Division, Civil Action No. 21-Cl-02508.
2 Kea Investments Ltd v Wikeley Family Trustee Ltd [2022] NZHC 2881; Kea Investments Ltd v Wikeley Family Trustee Ltd [2023] NZHC 466; Kea Investments Ltd v Wikeley Family Trustee Ltd (in interim liq) [2023] NZHC 2407; Kea…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Gibson v Wikeley

Details

AGLC: Gibson v Wikeley [2025] NZHC 2762
Case: [2025] NZHC 2762
Decision Date: 18 July 2025

CaseChat Overview and Summary

This case involves an originating application for directions by the interim liquidators of Wikeley Family Trustee Limited (WFTL), a trust in interim liquidation, and WFTL as trustee of the Wikeley Family Trust. The applicants seek directions to refrain from enforcing a default judgment obtained in Kentucky against Kea Investments Ltd, and to procure its discharge. The respondents include Kenneth, William, Oliver, and Gemma Wikeley, as well as WFTL and the trustees of the Wikeley Family Trust. The legal issues revolve around the propriety of the interim liquidators' actions in enforcing the Kentucky default judgment, given its determination as obtained by fraud, and the impact of recent Supreme Court decisions on the interim liquidators' authority and obligations. The court considered the principles of judicial supervision over liquidators and trustees, the rule in Re Condon, and the need to protect the interim liquidators from potential claims arising from enforcing the fraudulent judgment. The court ultimately granted the directions sought, allowing the interim liquidators and WFTL to refrain from enforcing the default judgment and to take necessary steps to procure its discharge. The decision also reserved leave for further orders if circumstances change and directed the parties to confer on the remaining aspects of the application. The court emphasized the importance of ensuring the interim liquidators act in accordance with their equitable obligations and the highest principles, given the fraudulent nature of the default judgment and the ongoing attempts by the Wikeley family to enforce it.

Orders