There is a pernicious and convenient fallacy in the argument that the shareholders alone are to be blamed for allowing the self-interested directors and Tenor to deprive them of their property and rights with the aid of the Monitor and the CCAA Court.

It is the same self-serving argument men have used to justify greed as an acceptable human trait, especially in the business and finance world, provided that they are not caught breaking the law. In their view, they are only “advancing their and/or their clients’ interests”. And so, it is okay and even laudable to cheat on your taxes, con your investors, etc. if you can get away with it.

The fact that we have a judicial system, Securities Commission and the like attest to the need for even the most advanced societies to build safeguards to protect the integrity of a system that would stop functioning properly the moment it loses its credibility. Once those safeguards are undermined by legal trickery and the buck passing by those responsible for protecting the integrity of the system, society as a whole pays the price.

The idea that “Potentially interested stakeholders cannot sit idle and await the outcome of realization proceedings. They must act to protect their interests or suffer the attendant consequences.” is an epigram at best. It is not and cannot be grounded in reality, given the latitude the CCAA Court and the Monitor afforded KRY to keep the shareholders in the dark, and the hands-off approach taken by the Canadian regulatory bodies when informed about the malfeasances involved. Not because the malfeasances could not be proven, but because they all passed the buck to the CCAA Court and relied on the Court’s ability and readiness to discharge their responsibilities. They are now fully aware that their reliance on the Court was unfounded.