Cantar Pool Products Limited/Produits de Piscines Cantar Limitee

On October 17, 2006, by Order of the Honourable Justice Cummings, an initial Order (the “Initial Order“) under the CCAA was granted for Cantar Pool Products Limited/Produits de Piscines Cantar Limitée (“Cantar” or the “Company“). Pursuant to the Initial Order, B. Riley Farber Inc. (“B. Riley Farber“) was appointed Monitor.

Status Updates

On November 23, 2006, a CCAA Plan (the “Plan“) was filed. On January 12, 2007, the creditors approved the Plan. On January 18, 2007, the Plan was approved by the Court.

On January 30, 2007, all conditions precedent were completed and the Plan became effective. A copy of the Plan and the notice to creditors dated February 5, 2007, is attached below.

Since January 2007, a full chronology of events is set out in the Sixth Report attached below. In summary:

In the CCAA Plan, Cantar undertook to distribute to the creditors the proceeds of a vendor take back mortgage (“VTB Mortgage”) which had a $1.6 million face value with interest to accrue. The VTB mortgage was subject to release by a group of lenders (hereinafter referred to as the “Lenders”), to permit payout of proceeds to the creditors of Cantar. The agent for the group of lenders was ABN Amro, which subsequently became Bank of America. That release was subject to the dividend to creditors not being more than 25 cents on the dollar or to Larger Claim (see definition in the Report) creditors. Based on claims admitted it is estimated at around 20 cents on the dollar would be paid to those creditors with claims admitted.
All directors resigned from Cantar following approval of the CCAA Plan. As there were no directors, the Ministry of Consumer and Commercial Affairs dissolved Cantar which caused the assets of the company to escheat to the crown.
Absent secured claims, the Province (Crown) has a right to claim on remaining proceeds or assets of a company once it is dissolved.
In this case, the Province has a potential claim on the VTB Mortgage and related proceeds vs the rights set out under the CCAA Plan, which provided for release of security from the Lenders as long as the payout was not more than 25 cents on the dollar.
Through court approval on January 25, 2012, the Monitor took control of the VTB proceeds of $2.1 million. These funds are presently held in the Monitor’s trust account pending resolution of certain rights the Province of Ontario may have to such proceeds.
The Monitor and its legal counsel sought information from Polyair (Cantar’s parent) and they in turn liaised with the Bank of America in order to address certain information requests of the Province in order to satisfy the Province that it would have no right to such funds, as the Lenders’ security, if in place, would trump the Province’s claim, if that is factually correct, after review of the information from the Lender.
As a result of these investigations, the Monitor and its legal counsel deemed it appropriate to seek direction from the Court to, among other matters, authorize distribution of proceeds to the creditors of record or the Province of Ontario. A Court hearing date has been set for February 21, 2013. The detailed Motion materials are set out below.
Pursuant to a Court Order dated February 21, 2013, the Monitor is authorized and directed to make payment of the balance of proceeds held by the Monitor as follows:
- Firstly, to pay or make allowance for any remaining or additional fees and disbursements incurred or to be incurred by the Monitor or its counsel; and
- Secondly, to make payment and distribution to those creditors having proven claims against the Applicant in accordance with the provisions of the Plan of Arrangement of the Applicant as sanctioned by this Court.

As a result, the Monitor is proceeding to make arrangements for distribution of dividends to Large Claim Creditors which will take place once all appeal periods have expired.
The Monitor will then move to be discharged.

Creditor or Employee Enquiries

For creditor or employee enquiries, please contact:
Paul Denton
T: 416.496.3773
E: pdenton@brileyfin.com

The case updates and court filed documents on this website are for information purposes only and you should consult your financial or legal adviser if you have any questions or concerns about your rights or obligations. Additional updates on the status of these proceedings may become available in the future.

Documents

CCAA Plan and Notice to Creditors

Monitor Reports

First Report October 16 2006
Second Report October 18 2006
Third Report of the Monitor November 10 2006
Fourth Report dated January 16, 2007
Fifth Report dated December 9, 2011 – Part 1 of 2
Fifth Report dated December 9, 2011 – Part 2 of 2
Sixth Report dated January 24, 2013 (w/o appendices) – see also Motion Record returnable February 21, 2013

Motion Materials

Court Orders & Endorsements