Verna Hiebert walked into a Brandon courtroom in mid-January with a spring in her step and an air of purpose. But 90 minutes later, when leaving the courtroom, that optimism was replaced by a shaking head and lips pressed tight together.
The owner of Loadmaster Transportation, a Winnipeg based trucking firm, appeared in small claims court seeking nearly $10,000 from Alexander Grain Inc., a grain elevator west of Brandon that went out of business in 2008.
“We provided a service and we didn’t get paid,” Hiebert told the court before providing receipts to prove that Loadmaster shipped grain for the elevator, owned by Barb and Dave Chapman.
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The judge ruled in favour of Loadmaster but Hiebert didn’t walk out of the court holding a cheque for $10,000. That’s because after selling its elevator and paying off debts, Alexander Grain Inc. maintains there’s no money left for other creditors.
“It’s unfortunate. But what can you do?” said Hiebert, who added that getting stiffed is not unusual in the trucking business.
“I hear it so often …. They (truckers) really don’t know what direction to go.”
While it might not have worked in this dispute over debt, one direction that truckers, small businesses and farmers might want to consider, before calling the lawyer, is mediation.
“It’s an impartial third party to talk about options …. The mediator can’t enforce any decision for or against,” said Andrew Deruyck, a mediator and financial consultant for the Manitoba Farm Mediation Board.
Mediation is an attractive option for producers seeking ways to resolve debt issues because Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the federal government offer farm debt mediation services.
In Manitoba, Deruyck said, the courts can mandate mediation, but in most cases a farmer or creditor enters the process voluntarily.
Typically farm debt mediation takes about 45 days in Manitoba, Deruyck said, and involves a financial consultant going to the farm to prepare a recovery plan with the farmer.
For non-farmers, mediation is also an option, but not via the farm debt program.
“Then you’re into the private mediation,” Deruyck.
One of the significant benefits of mediation is that it’s less confrontational than court because the two parties meet and work together on a solution.
“A big part of it is understanding the other party’s concerns,” he said. “The farmer may think the creditor wants all the money right now …. But maybe he’s willing to let the (debt) run for another five years, but he needs more security.”
In addition to the more cordial atmosphere, it’s also a much cheaper option than court because farm debt mediation is free.
For more information on farm debt mediation programs, call Agriculture Canada at 866-452-5556.
