Court denies Clive Palmer a bargain buyout

OWNERS of timeshares at Clive Palmer’s Sunshine Coast golf resort have defeated the hostile takeover of their holiday homes for a discount price.

OWNERS of timeshare villas at Clive Palmer’s Sunshine Coast golf resort have defeated the resources tycoon’s hostile takeover of their holiday homes for a discount price.

The Federal Court in Brisbane yesterday slapped down the Palmer United Party leader’s legal bid to smooth the way for his buyout of about 80 villas, owned by about 300 timeshare investors, at his Palmer Coolum Resort, for a price arguably lower than market-value.

The beleaguered investors, who have battled Mr Palmer on many fronts since he bought the resort from Lend Lease in 2011, were celebrating last night. They hope their court win will mean Mr Palmer will be forced to buy all of their properties at a more reasonable price.

Federal Court judge Berna Collier dismissed Mr Palmer’s application for a judicial review of a 2012 Takeovers Panel decision that declared the conduct of Mr Palmer and his associated companies had been “unacceptable”.

“In the circumstances I have outlined, I am unable to identify any manner in which natural justice has been denied to Mr Palmer,” Justice Collier’s 72-page written judgment read.

She ordered him to pay the legal costs of the victors, who include the Takeovers Panel, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission and the investors.

Mr Palmer lodged a takeover bid with ASIC in April 2012, offering to buy some of the villas — which sit on the grounds of his golf, tennis and spa resort — for $55,000 per quarter-share.

However, the owners resisted and took the matter to the independent Takeovers Panel. It ruled that since Mr Palmer had earlier bought villas for $65,013 per quarter-share, any takeover bid should be frozen until he offered owners at least that price.

Some originally paid up to $110,000 for the properties.

Ivan and Catherine Mikulich, from Castle Hill in Sydney, bought their quarter-share of a villa at the Coolum resort for $85,000 in the 2000s, to use for holidays with their two children.

Mr Mikulich said they had not seen the villa since Mr Palmer had bought the Sunshine Coast resort, after he locked out villa owners over a maintenance dispute.

“It’s cost us a lot more money to go on holidays, to places like Hamilton Island, the Gold Coast and Port Douglas, at full rates, when we could have been renting the villa,” Mr Mikulich said last night.

He said he hoped the Federal Court decision would mean Mr Palmer would make the owners an offer — at the higher price — that would allow them the financial freedom to sell, and leave the resort altogether.

“We hope this judgment will give us relief, and that we’ll be financially compensated so we can have some closure. It’s definitely an important milestone.”

Of course, the legal war may not yet be over. Mr Palmer may still lodge an appeal with the full bench of the Federal Court, or take the matter further, possibly to the High Court of Australia.

Mr Palmer and his media representatives did not respond last night to questions from The Australian.