Jean Nassif’s Toplace construction firm hit with multimillion-dollar lawsuit

Jean Nassif’s construction company has been hit with a $4m lawsuit weeks after his daughter was charged by organised crime police.

Property developer Jean Nassif. Picture: Liam Mendes

Property developer Jean Nassif’s construction company has been hit with a lawsuit totalling almost $4m just weeks after his solicitor-daughter was charged by organised crime squad detectives as part of a fraud investigation.

It comes as Boral Resources (NSW) Pty Ltd placed a caveat on the inner-west Sydney waterfront home in Chiswick that Mr Nassif bought for $4.9m in 2015.

Boral’s caveat was lodged pursuant to an equitable charge contained in an agreement between Mr Nassif and Boral.

Mr Nassif’s company Toplace, of which he is sole director, has been accused of failing and refusing to pay invoices of $3,808,908 to a Sydney-based contractor.

The contractor, Transform Constructions Pty Ltd, alleges Toplace is also withholding formwork material in the form of timber, plywood and frames valued at $4,853,350 at a construction site in northwest Sydney.

A forklift, slab formwork system and a shipping container containing other equipment worth $220,000 is also allegedly locked in the construction site.

On Wednesday, it emerged Mr Nassif is selling off a parcel of land in Sydney’s south expected to fetch more than $100m.

The developments come as Mr Nassif’s multimillion-dollar waterfront home and Toplace office were raided on February 28 in relation to a fraud investigation into his daughter Ashlyn.

Ms Nassif was charged with dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception and publishing false, misleading material to obtain advantage. She has not entered a plea.

Her father, who is overseas, has not been accused of wrongdoing or charged with an offence.

Artist’s impression of the Box Hill City Centre residential and retail precinct by Toplace in Sydney's northwest.

According to documents filed with ASIC, Ms Nassif, 27, was removed as an alternative director of Toplace a week after her arrest.

Documents filed in the Supreme Court of NSW reveal director of Transform Construct­ions Laith Khedher, who was born in Iraq and moved to Australia in 2005, allegedly made a verbal agreement with Mr Nassif in or around December 2021 to supply and install formwork at a Toplace commercial and residential development in Box Hill.

Transform Constructions alleges it was locked out from the construction site in October 2022, and prohibited from removing equipment and materials. “On 27 October, 2022, Toplace refused to pay Transform for work carried out and materials supplied by Transform in accordance with the agreement,” court documents state. “As a result, Transform is unable to pay subcontractors and employees who have carried out work and supplied materials to the site.”

Transforms claims since Toplace has allegedly not paid for the materials, they have an “immediate right to possession”.

According to a ledger filed with the court, Toplace paid $1,285,764 to Transform between January and September 2022.

On Thursday, an order was made restraining Toplace from “dealing” with the equipment and materials. On Monday, judge Michael Ball clarified that equipment and materials could continue to be used by Toplace to not prohibit delay in construction of the site, with payment to be determined at a later date.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated there was a loan between Nassif and Boral Resources (NSW).