Who's Suing Whom: Ice-cream cost RBS millions

ROYAL BANK of Scotland is trying to recoup some of the millions it lost lending to a luxury ice-cream maker that went bust last year by suing the accountants who recommended that the bank should lend to the company.

RBS has issued a writ against Grant Thornton over two "due diligence" reports the accountancy firm carried out into Tudor Dairies in July and August 1997.

The bank accuses the national accountancy firm of "breach of contract and/or negligence" and is demanding damages and costs.

Tudor Dairies was a historic West Midlands firm that made the Loseley and Dayville brands of ice-cream and mousses. The company needed to raise money two years ago to move from its traditional base in Henley-in-Arden to a new factory in Stourbridge.

This followed a "nimby" campaign by neighbours and the local council in Henley-in-Arden against the noise made by the old factory. Grant Thornton gave the go-ahead for RBS to lend Tudor Dairies the funds, and Tudor duly moved to the new factory, which it bought from Nestle.

Accountants from Grant Thornton revisited the company in December 1997 and reported that its finances had dramatically worsened. Four months later RBS was forced to appoint receivers to Tudor Dairies. The bank lost "several millions" it had lent to the company. It is now attempting to recoup as much of these losses as possible from Grant Thornton.

THE FINANCIAL Services Authority (FSA) is attempting to close down an investment and foreign exchange operation being run by an individual, Rafiq Ahmed Petkar, from his own house in Acton, west London.

The FSA claims that Mr Petkar's two firms, Graceland Investments and Magenta Forex, are unlicensed under the Financial Services Act and must therefore stop trading. The investment regulator issued a writ a fortnight ago applying for an injunction against the businesses and served the writ last week.

The FSA also claims that Mr Petkar has "made statements, promises or forecasts which he knows to be misleading, false or deceptive and dishonestly concealed material facts ..."

Mr Petkar operates Magenta Forex from his house at 4A Cotton Avenue, Acton, while Graceland Investments is based at York Street in London's West End.

PORSCHE and its US subsidiary, Porsche Cars North America, have filed a lawsuit in a US district court against companies using 130 Internet domain names that use the Porsche name or a variation of the name.

Porsche said it had filed a lawsuit in the court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

The company's lawyers said that use of the domain names ranged from "domain squatting" to using famous company names on pornographic sites.

Domain squatting is where speculators register a name (normally a famous company name) on the Internet in the hope they may be able to sell it back to the company at a profit.

Domain names are registered with Network Solutions, based in Virginia. The companies said it was proceeding with an in rem lawsuit (directed against property rather than a specific person) because many of the domain registrants used fictitious names and addresses, while others were registered by US companies or individuals using fictitious offshore corporations.

A MAN who bought a property from a receiver at auction is being sued by the receiver for alleged failure to pay the full price of the property. Moshe Hager of Upper Clapton Road, London, is being sued by the auctioneers Strettons and by John Alexander, receiver to Peter Bilyard, over a property in Stamford Hill sold at auction for pounds 49,000 last July.

Strettons is claiming pounds 9,800 plus costs, while Mr Alexander is demanding the deposit of pounds 4,900 plus damages and costs.