The former owners of the Provisions Inc. grocery store, who closed shop without notice last January, have been ordered to pay nearly half a million dollars to their predecessors.
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In the absence of the former owners Stéphanie Guessas Bouillon and Christophe Bouillon, who remain unreachable to this day, a default judgment was rendered in Superior Court on April 19, in favor of the Drouin family.
The couple is thus ordered to pay $446,250 to the plaintiffs, Bruno and Vincent Drouin, from whom they purchased the business on Cartier Avenue nearly a year and a half ago. The amount corresponds to the “sale price balance” established during the transaction in November 2022.
The Drouins “satisfied”
“Satisfied” with this judgment, Vincent Drouin has no illusions about the possibility of one day getting his hands on his due. “Of course we would like to get that money back. We’ll see what happens eventually,” said the man who managed the business for more than forty years.
In interview at Newspaper a few weeks ago, the Drouins’ lawyer, Me Nicolas Gagné, explained that a possible “default judgment”, as recently rendered by the Superior Court, is valid for a period of 10 years. “We can therefore carry it out for 10 years,” he said.
In the event that the Bouillons were still in France, this judgment could possibly be approved there, to be executed there. “It’s a frequent practice,” added M.e Won.
Originally from the Ardennes region, in the north of France, the French couple have not returned there since they left Quebec in disaster in January, according to our information.
Furthermore, their lawyer, Me Ahmed Harir has not returned our interview requests since the court’s decision against his clients.
Last March, Me Harir had confirmed that Stéphanie and Christophe Bouillon had indeed returned to France, due to “financial problems” and M’s health.me Guessas Bouillon. The owner would have been hospitalized in Quebec, before continuing “her treatments” in France, the lawyer explained.
The newspaper also tried unsuccessfully to contact the couple by email. Their address is now invalid.
Photo Stevens LeBlanc
The Provisions Inc. grocery store on Cartier Avenue has been abandoned since the former owners Stéphanie and Christophe Bouillon closed the establishment without notice at the end of last January.
Deserted grocery store
Closed without notice on January 19, the grocery store on Avenue Cartier is still deserted.
However, it passed into the hands of the National Bank of Canada on March 14, which is now responsible for selling it.
According to court documents, the couple owed their creditor more than $2.7 million.
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