Clive Palmer loses his bid to abort resort court case

Clive Palmer’s Sunshine Coast resort has lost its bid to throw out a seven-year-old court case.

Clive Palmer leaves the Supreme Court in July. Picture: AAP

Clive Palmer’s mothballed Sunshine Coast resort has lost its bid to throw out a seven-year-old court case launched by villa shareholders who have had utilities to their properties cut.

The villa owners claim the Palmer Coolum Resort has failed its contractual agreement to maintain access to the once-­luxury units, to manage the roster in which shareholders can stay in the properties, and to give villa owners access to the resort and its facilities.

The lawsuit, lodged by the shareholders’ President’s Club in 2012, seeks declarations that the administration contract was valid, and damages from the ­resort for loss of benefits.

The case has been in legal limbo since 2013, with the villa owners saying it is because they’ve been tied up in other lawsuits by Mr Palmer, a self-­confessed fan of litigation.

There have been 19 separate lawsuits involving the companies since 2012.

Queensland Supreme Court judge Elizabeth Wilson today ruled that villa owners could continue their case but said it could not be moved to the Federal Court where similar proceedings are under way because there was a risk the trial would be delayed. The Federal Court case is set for a two-week trial in December.

Palmer Coolum Resort had tried to have the Supreme Court proceeding discontinued. “I am satisfied that the circumstances of this case show there is good reason for excepting these proceedings from the general prohibition in a case in which nearly six years have elapsed since the last step was taken,” Justice Wilson said.

It is unknown whether the President’s Club will continue the Supreme Court matter.

The President’s Club says Mr Palmer, through his entities, took control and made changes to the administration agreement to relieve the resort of conforming with the contract.

Three settlements have been proposed since 2012, but have all been unsuccessful.

The timeshare holders, who invested up to $100,000 for part shares in the villas, have been waging a war with Mr Palmer since he sought to buy them out.

The once-glittering Hyatt ­Regency Coolum, which boasted one of Australia’s best golf courses, was shut in 2015. Photographs have shown resort pools filled with green water, gardens overgrown and buildings run down.

The lawsuit was lodged in June 2012, two months after Mr Palmer’s Palmer Leisure Coolum, previously known as Queensland North Australia Pty Ltd, proposed a takeover of the President’s Club. Last year, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission charged Mr Palmer and Palmer Leisure Coolum with breaching corporate law over the takeover bid.

The charges carry a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment and a fine of $11,000 for an ­individual and $55,000 in respect of a corporation.