NHL professional Robin Lehner, 31, has filed for personal bankruptcy.
The star has yet to pay off a debt of just over five million kroner.
– This decision will, of course, be appealed, Lehner’s lawyer, Claas Jorgensen, tells Sportbladet.
On Wednesday of last week the verdict was confirmed in the Naka District Court. Robin Lehner, who belongs to the Vegas Golden Knights, in 2016 entered into a guarantee obligation regarding a loan of SEK 2.5 million to a company that, among other things, used the money to obtain asylum residence.
The company did not repay the money according to the agreement, which forced the lender to turn to Robin Lehner. The star, according to the ruling, did not cover the debt and therefore did not fulfill the guarantee obligation.
lender Then he decided to take the case to court.
– Lender Jonas Edward’s attorney says my principal has a legally binding default judgment against Lehner.
A default judgment means that the dispute is decided entirely in agreement with the plaintiff’s claims when the other party does not show up for the hearing.
Debt Lehner: 5 million
Eventually, the lender filed for bankruptcy for Robin Lehner.
– The hope was that Lehner would do the right thing by paying off the debt, but that didn’t happen despite several attempts, says Jonas Edward.
Claas Jorgensen, Lehner’s new representative in the case, says the decision will be appealed.
– To me, it seems pretty clear that Robin Lehner is not insolvent. Claas Jorgensen says he has three years left on a contract worth around SEK 150m in total and is willing to pay.
In assessing insolvency, you must have a forward-looking perspective and appear quite clear that it has had the opportunity to pay that amount. Therefore, he may not be declared bankrupt.
Investigate opportunities
According to the ruling, Lehner paid off half a million of the debt, but not the rest of the amount. The loan has an annual interest rate of 30 percent, and the total debt now stands at just over five million kroner (data from Norwegian Kronofogden).
– According to Robin Lehner, the creditor in question has already been compensated. The default judgment was announced even though Robin did not receive the documents and the case was not heard. We are currently investigating possible legal action. So I can’t make any other comments.
The company to which Lehner entered into a surety bond was declared bankrupt in 2018.
The goalkeeper underwent hip surgery some time ago and, according to the lawyer, is in a rehabilitation camp.
In 2020, Lehner signed a five-year contract extension with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Sportbladet repeatedly sought out Robin Lehner and those responsible for the company, without success. According to Clas Jörgensen, the star is in a post-operative rehabilitation camp and is therefore difficult to reach.
