Securinvest Financial Planners

In recent months you may have received communication from a number of different law firms relating to class actions being initiated against Great Southern, its Directors, related companies and “connected financiers” such as Bendigo and Adelaide Bank.

At Securinvest, although we do receive copies of communications relating to the projects we personally hold in Great Southern, there are times however when information is sent to you which we are unaware of. We have contacted these firms and have asked to be added to their database to ensure we keep abreast of the communication you currently receive.

The purpose of this letter is to provide an overview of the various parties and the class actions that we are aware of. There are likely to be some costs involved but purely through the weight of numbers, this is a cost effective way to be part of any action that pursues those who may have provided either inaccurate or misleading information upon which the initial recommendation and investment was made.

As it currently stands, you may have received  communication from:

1. Macpherson & Kelly, a Dandenong based legal firm whose class action is aimed at those clients in projects from 2005 onwards and who may have debts owing to either Bendigo or Adelaide Bank. (FYI, funding arrangements were provided by either the Bendigo or Adelaide Bank for clients wishing to borrow the initial investment amount to enter into the various Great Southern projects). Macpherson & Kelly’s class action centers around the invalidity of these loans and the requirement of investors to re-pay outstanding balances. If you have not received information from them, we encourage you to please contact Tonya McDougal on (03) 9794 2690 or at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
   
   
2. DC Legal (formerly Dennis & Co), a Sydney based law firm who’s class action was initially targeted at those investors caught up in ‘Project Transform’, an attempt by Great Southern to buy projects (cattle and some plantations) which were cash flow positive in exchange for shares. These shares now have little or no value attached to them. DC Legal have extended their class action to include nearly all Great Southern projects, those investors caught up in Project Transform and those clients still with outstanding loans as mentioned above. DC legal can be contacted on (02) 8256 0600 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
   
   
3. IMF is an ASX listed company who provide funding for large scale litigation. They are forming a class action around Project Transform and the transfer of the Cattle Projects to shares. The majority of clients invested in the cattle projects have joined this class action.
   
   
4. Slater & Gordon, a well know litigation firm have commenced an investigation into the viability of a class action and will release further information in due course.
   
   
5. A very small number of clients in the 2005 woodlot project had proceeds invested in plantations on the Tiwi Island in the Northern Territory. Lease repayments were not met by Great Southern and as a result, the trees were forfeited to the land owner. The Tiwi Island Growers Group has been formed to start proceedings to retain ownership of the assets. Investors impacted have been contacted by both Securinvest and the Tiwi Island Growers Group. Information is available at www.savemytiwitrees.com.au

Finally, there has been an investors lobby group formed called Save My Trees. Save My Trees is focused on ensuring stakeholders affected by recent Great Southern developments have a unified voice in dealing with the myriad of issues and seeking the best commercial outcome for all. There have been over 7,700 investors who have registered their details on the Save My Trees website and we encourage you to do the same at www.savemytrees.com.au

As clarity is obtained for some investors in Great Southern and uncertainty continues for others, the one certainty is that we all face a long and protracted series of legal battles ahead of us. We will endeavour to keep you posted as changes or updates occur but as mentioned previously, despite our efforts, there may continue to be information sent to you that we are not aware of.

In our dealings with those firms putting together a class action, Macpherson & Kelly have been very good and efficient, whereas messages left at the office of DC Legal remain unanswered. For information sent to us from Macpherson & Kelly please see the attachements at the end of this article.

As always, if you have any specific questions, please give our office a call on (03) 9574 8300 and speak with your adviser.