B.C. judge orders Monette Farms from Swift Current, Sask. to pay $12-million fee to adviser in ranching deal

Dan Zakreski · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 01, 2025 7:01 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

A British Columbia justice says Saskatchewan farming magnate Darrel Monette must wage the $12 cardinal he promised to an advisor successful a multimillion-dollar ranching deal successful 2021.

David Dutcyvich owns Vancouver Island-based 3L Developments Inc., which advised Monette successful the ranching deal, the judgement said.

Born connected a workplace successful Saskatchewan, Dutcyvich moved to B.C. arsenic a teen and started moving arsenic a logger. He went connected to create Lemare Lake Logging and then, from those profits, form 3L Developments, now portion of a related group of companies done which helium carries retired development, ranching and cultivation activities. 

Monette is the proprietor of Monette Farms Ltd., a ranching and farming cognition with holdings successful Saskatchewan, B.C., Manitoba and the United States. In a quality merchandise March 31, helium said that the company, based successful Swift Current, Sask., astir 245 kilometres westbound of Regina, is appealing the ruling.

Justice Emily Burke's 50-page ruling connected March 25 from the Supreme Court of British Columbia details the complex maneuvering behind the multimillion-dollar woody involving cattle and thousands of hectares scattered crossed 16 ranches successful the province's interior.

For each its complexities, Burke's determination came down to deciding which of the 2 multimillionaire farmers was telling the truth about what was oregon wasn't said connected a time successful May 2021 erstwhile the 2 men took a chopper thrust adjacent Kamloops to circuit the ranches.

Burke chose to judge Dutcyvich's relationship of what happened. 

"Mr. Dutcyvich said helium had a little aboriginal greeting speech with Mr. Monette conscionable anterior to the chopper tour, during which helium advised Mr. Monette that his enactment was fundamentally done and helium expected his $12 cardinal erstwhile the woody closed," Burke wrote.

"Mr. Monette says this speech did not occur."

B.C. cattle country

The quality began successful 2020 erstwhile the Blue Goose Cattle Company in Vancouver wanted to merchantability its ranching interests successful B.C. The shares successful Blue Goose Cattle were owned by Blue Goose Capital, which is simply a subsidiary of the Dundee Corp., a nationalist institution listed connected the Toronto Stock Exchange. 

Blue Goose Cattle owned 16 abstracted ranches with much than 18,200 hectares and 14,000 cows. It started negotiating the merchantability with LBJ Capital Inc., based successful Okotoks, Alta, astir 45 kilometres southbound of Calgary. As portion of its owed diligence, LBJ hired Dutcyvich and his company, 3L Developments, to reappraisal the deal.

"He is an 81-year-old, self-made, palmy businessman," Justice Burke wrote.

According to Burke's decision, Blue Goose wanted conscionable implicit $100 cardinal for its holdings. Dutcyvich's woody with LBJ was to spot if the terms was fair, and if helium could get it lower, helium would get a information of thing nether the $100 million asking price.

"For example, arsenic Mr. Dutcyvich explained, if helium was capable to trim the acquisition terms by $20 million, Mr. Dutcyvich and 3L Developments would person $10 million," Burke wrote.

The judgement details however Dutcyvich's chief fiscal serviceman astatine 3L Developments reviewed the company's backstage fiscal statements, portion Dutcyvich did on-the-ground inspections to yet worth the holdings astatine $76 million. He concluded that Blue Goose had claimed to person much cows than it did, moved instrumentality betwixt ranches to fudge the magnitude of assets, and would person a occupation with its onshore leases arsenic spot was being returned to First Nations peoples.

After providing LBJ Capital the advice, the institution and Blue Goose entered into a preliminary woody successful June 2020 to merchantability the bundle for $76 million.

This would nett Dutcyvich a $12 cardinal interest — fractional the $24 cardinal quality from the archetypal $100 cardinal asking price.

Monette Farms enters the picture

As it happened, LBJ Capital was incapable to adjacent the woody and by the autumn of 2020 Blue Goose decided it wouldn't woody with the company.

"At this time, chartless to Mr. Dutcyvich and 3L Developments, it appears that the defendants, Darrel Monette and Monette Farms, were making arrangements to person immoderate measurement of engagement with LBJ," Burke wrote.

"Mr. Monette disputes this. However, I find that the grounds supports this involvement." 

Monette was progressive successful league calls successful precocious 2020 involving LBJ and Dutcyvich, Burke wrote. In January 2021, Blue Goose chopped its dealings with LBJ. In March, Monette and Dutcyvich archetypal met successful person, which is erstwhile Dutcyvich said Monette archetypal asked for help.

Burke wrote that the important speech astir Dutcyvich's fee happened connected the helicopter thrust to circuit the ranches, in the archetypal oregon 2nd week of May 2021. 

"As portion of this conversation, Mr. Dutcyvich said to Mr. Monette: "You cognize the deal, my interest is $12 cardinal … are you going to wage me?" Mr. Dutcyvich testified that Mr. Monette replied "yes," he would wage the fee," Burke wrote.

"When cross-examined connected wherefore helium took nary much steps to corroborate the outgo owed by Monette Farms, Mr. Dutcyvich said that helium took Mr. Monette astatine his connection erstwhile helium said helium would wage Mr. Dutcyvich for the work. He liked and trusted Mr. Monette, and truthful helium didn't consciousness the request to prosecute him."

In October 2021, Dundee Corp. announced it had closed the sale of its Blue Goose Capital Corp. shares to Monette Farms.

Justice Burke had harsh words for Monette successful her conclusion.

"The defendants' duplicity passim sought to minimize and contradict the enactment undertaken by the plaintiffs, and I bash not judge those claims. As argued, Mr. Monette appears to beryllium reluctant to wage for those who assistance him connected his way to accumulate his precise important wealth, and the tribunal volition not assistance him successful those endeavours."

In the March 31 quality release, Monette and Monette Farms wrote "we wholly cull and disagree with the findings of the justice and volition beryllium appealing the determination to the BC Court of Appeal immediately."