The Deposit Insurance Corp. of Ontario (DICO) has secured a $2.4 million judgment against a former director of a caisse populaire that failed back in the 1990s.
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice released a decision on May 6, granting a $2.4 million judgment against Nicol Malette, who was a director of the Caisse Populaire d’Iroquois Falls, which collapsed in 1997. He also ran a monument, funeral home and granite business in northern Ontario.
According to the decision, the caisse allegedly suffered losses of more than $15 million, due to a series of loan arrangements that resulted in funds being received by the Malette companies, “many of which loans have been determined in criminal proceedings … to have been fraudulent.”
The decision indicates that, in 2004, the general manager of the Caisse, Suzanne Clouthier, pled guilty to defrauding her employer and was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail. Malette was also charged with fraud. He pled not guilty, but in 2008 after a trial, he was convicted and sentenced to 15 months in jail. The trial judge concluded that “restitution in these circumstances is unrealistic”, the decision notes.
Nevertheless, DICO, which provides deposit insurance to credit unions and caisse populaires in Ontario, brought a motion seeking summary judgment against Malette for $2.4 million.
The court ruled that a trial is not necessary in this case, and that the motion could be decided based on the evidentiary record before the court. And, it ruled that there was sufficient evidence to support a finding of civil fraud, without resorting to a trial.
The court ruled that the DICO should have a summary judgment against Malette for $2,411,300 plus pre-judgment interest.