Trish Barrett

The applicant brought a consent motion within its CCAA proceedings for approval of Sale Procedures and an extension of the Stay Period.

The court found the applicant acted in good faith and with due diligence, and granted the motion, extending the Stay Period to December 22, 2021, and setting a bid deadline of December 31, 2021.

The applicant, McEwan Enterprises Inc., sought approval of a related-party transaction under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act to sell substantially all of its assets to a newly formed company owned by its current shareholders.

The motion was opposed by a landlord who had not reached a consensual arrangement with the applicant.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that the mandatory requirements of section 36(4) of the CCAA were not met, as no good faith efforts were made to sell the assets to non-related persons and the consideration was not shown to be superior to a receivership and bankruptcy alternative.

The applicant, McEwan Enterprises Inc., sought an Amended and Restated Initial Order at a comeback hearing in its CCAA proceedings to extend the stay period and increase the administration and directors' charges.

A creditor opposed the motion, arguing the applicant should not be allowed to continue without a court-approved marketing and sale process and raising concerns about a proposed transaction.

The court granted the requested relief to allow the applicant to continue operations, finding the creditor's concerns raised arguable issues that were more properly addressed at an upcoming motion to approve the proposed transaction.

McEwan Enterprises Inc. (MEI), a restaurant and catering business, applied for an Initial Order under the CCAA due to financial challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The court found MEI to be a 'debtor company' under the CCAA and granted the Initial Order, including a stay of proceedings, authorization to pay certain pre-filing obligations, and the approval of Administration and Directors' Charges.

The court also extended the stay of proceedings to non-filing parties, including the founder Mark McEwan, to prevent disruption to the restructuring efforts.

However, the court declined MEI's request to dispense with the standard CCAA creditor notice provisions, citing the open court presumption.