U.S. Casino Sues Melnyk For Failing To Pay Bank Drafts.

[sawchuk1971]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/eugene-melnyk-lawsuit-casino-1.5283885

Court documents allege Melnyk tried to pay the casino with five bank drafts totalling $900,000 over the weekend of March 17, 2017, and those drafts were then "dishonoured" by a bank.

The casino management wants that money back, plus $15,000 in damages, costs and interest.

Click to read more...

 

[TheLegend]

Thread already on the main board about this.

But strictly from a business standpoint..... .... I have to wonder how the league is going to look at it??

Unless it directly affects the Sens I really don’t see what they can do other than facepalm it.

 

[LadyStanley]

There can be commissioner sanctions imposed (for "conduct unbecoming", IOW owner not paying debts). Owners have been censured before for SEC violations (that have nothing to do with running hockey team).

 

[DaveG]

There can be commissioner sanctions imposed (for "conduct unbecoming", IOW owner not paying debts). Owners have been censured before for SEC violations (that have nothing to do with running hockey team).

Here's hoping. How Melnyk is running Ottawa is a stain on the league, especially now that the other two teams that had serious question marks around how they were being operated seem to have found what looks to be stable ownership going forward.

 

[Ted Hoffman]

No, this won't be "the final straw" the gets the team yanked from him. [Sorry, those of you hoping for this.] But if Melnyk wants to put himself into bad standing with the rest of the owners and have the league increase scrutiny into whether he's capable of keeping the team solvent and risk further actions, this is a good way to go about it.

 

[tony d]

Doesn't sound good at all. During my time as a Sens fan Melnyk's approach was something that I ?. Hope this ends up resulting in a new owner or co-owner for the Senators.

 

[TheLegend]

And it continues....

Melnyk has to go to court to get a company jet back for unpaid expenses.

https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.5287642

 

[madhi19]

You got to feel for the Sens fans. Today should have been a good day Dorion just signed Chabot to a not so insane eight for eight deal... No instead they get a reminder that their owner is broke.

 

[Jumptheshark]

Has he made a statement yet?

 

[Tarantula]

Has he made a statement yet?

A bank statement?

 

[Ernie]

I wonder how many other outstanding debts Melnyk has? Seems like he has to be sued in order for him to pay his bills. Given the amount he gambled in a single weekend, perhaps we have some indication as to why he is having cash flow problems?

 

[LeHab]

I wonder how many other outstanding debts Melnyk has? Seems like he has to be sued in order for him to pay his bills. Given the amount he gambled in a single weekend, perhaps we have some indication as to why he is having cash flow problems?

We can start with having his private jet withheld over unpaid debt:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/otta...egal-action-to-get-private-jet-back-1.5287642

Although the debt was eventually paid into an escrow until both parties can settle on the amount owed.

 

[18Hossa]

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/melnyk-files-possible-defences-for-nonpayment-of-gambling-debt

The first is that bank drafts were generated as indicated in March 2017, but, Katz alleges, the casino could have delayed presenting them for payment until September, which “caused the drafts to become stale.”

Katz, concerned the “questionable appearance” of the signatures that appeared on the drafts. This, he added, would have given TD Bank a reasonable basis for believing the drafts might not be genuine. Katz noted that TD Bank was not under the control of Melnyk.

the possibility that the gaming authority acted in “bad faith”. How so? Katz alleges Melnyk’s defence could be that the casino “refused (Melnyk’s) instruction to cash out” his chips just when he was winning “significant amounts of money.” The allegation is that the gaming authority “induced” Melnyk to keep gambling until he incurred “substantial losses.”

Katz in his filing gave notice that he may argue any one or all of these defences “or alternative defences” in an upcoming motion to dismiss the complaint against the Ottawa Senators owner.

 

[Ernie]

LOL good luck with those defences. The first two mean that Melnyk is still going to owe the money, maybe with interest reduced, but the last one is basically how casinos function and I doubt that Melnyk is going to get far with that unless the casino did something truly egregious.

Hard to understand why Melnyk is paying lawyers to fight this unless he really doesn't have the money right now.