On July 9, 2026, the British Columbia Court of Appeal granted an application by creditors, Lanyard Investments Inc. as general partner of LFC Heather21 Limited Partnership, City Mortgage Investment Corporation, and Peterson Investment Group Inc. to partially lift the automatic stay of proceedings triggered by an appeal of a bankruptcy order against real estate developer Helen Chan Sun. The stay arose under s. 195 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act following Ms. Sun’s appeal of a June 2026 order obtained by the applicants adjudging her bankrupt.
A central issue was whether the stay should remain in place pending the appeal or be partially lifted to permit the trustee in bankruptcy to continue identifying and preserving the debtor’s assets. The creditors argued that maintaining the stay created a risk that assets could be obscured, shielded, or otherwise dissipated before the appeal was resolved.
Justice Brundrett found that there was support for the chambers judge’s conclusion that Ms. Sun had failed to demonstrate sufficient cause to dismiss the bankruptcy application and observed that the evidentiary record supported the refusal of the adjournment request that formed part of the appeal. The Court further noted concerns regarding changes in the ownership and control of companies connected to the Foster Martin Development and the need to protect assets for the benefit of creditors.
Applying the test for lifting a stay, the Court concluded that the balance of prejudice favoured the creditors. The Court held that the trustee should be permitted to continue carrying out its mandate to identify and preserve assets pending the appeal and found that the order sought was appropriately tailored to those objectives without permitting asset distributions. The Court therefore granted the creditors’ application and partially lifted the statutory stay.
Cassels successfully represented the applicants, Lanyard Investments Inc. as general partner of LFC Heather21 Limited Partnership, City Mortgage Investment Corporation, and Peterson Investment Group Inc.