AccessEasyFunds sues Anne Squires over $510K in advances

A payday loan-style company for realtors is suing Exit Realty on the Rock owner Anne Squires over $510,000 it says may be related to "fictitious real estate transactions."

AccessEasyFunds Limited is accusing Squires of breaching its contract and breaching its guarantee, and is making an additional claim of "fraudulent misrepresentation" against her.

"Squires and Exit acted dishonestly by intentionally mishandling the plaintiff's trust funds to their own gain," said the statement of claim, filed at Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court on Friday.

"Further exacerbating the situation was Squires' and Exit's use of fictitious real estate transactions as a pretext to secure purchase of real estate commissions," the statement said.

AccessEasyFunds advances money to real estate agents for house sales before the deals close. The company charges a fee for the service, and is then supposed to be reimbursed when the commission comes in.

AccessEasyFunds alleges in court documents that Squires created an number of fake real estate transactions "with the explicit intent to defraud the plaintiff."

The allegations have not been tested in court, and Squires has yet to file a statement of defence.

The lawsuit also names a numbered company— that lists Squires as sole director — as a defendant.

That numbered company guaranteed the amount owing, the court filings allege, then defaulted on the agreement.

43 transactions at issue

According to court documents, the $510,000 in question relates to 43 transactions made by Squires between Sept. 24, 2015 and Feb. 5, 2016.

Feb. 5 is the day after Exit Realty on the Rock had its licence suspended by the Newfoundland and Labrador government. The company was forced into receivership shortly afterward.

• Exit Realty on the Rock's licence suspended

On Feb. 16, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary executed a search warrant at the real estate company's Kenmount Road head office.

According to a document the police filed in court to get a judge to sign off on the warrant, Squires is under investigation for theft, fraud and breach of trust.

• Anne Squires under RNC investigation for theft, fraud and breach of trust

The RNC court filing noted that other people associated with Exit Realty on the Rock told police about alleged irregularities with the company's trust account and "false sales" to get commissions from AccessEasyFunds.

Those allegations are unproven, and Squires is not facing any charges.

Receivership process ongoing 

The receivership process involving Exit Realty on the Rock is continuing.

The receiver, PricewaterhouseCoopers, has been working to recover outstanding receivables.

• Unsecured creditors 'unlikely' to see cash from Exit Realty on the Rock receivership

The matter is expected to be back in court later this month.