VAUGHAN, ON, June 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - CannTrust Holdings
Inc. ("CannTrust" or the "Company") has become aware of the
press release issued today by the Ontario Securities Commission
(the "OSC") announcing that three former directors and officers at
CannTrust (namely, Eric Paul,
Peter Aceto and Mark Litwin) have been charged with offences
under the Securities Act (Ontario) in connection with their alleged
involvement in efforts to conceal the illegal growing of cannabis
at CannTrust over a 10-month period in 2018 and 2019 and, in the
case of Messrs. Paul and Litwin, their alleged trading in the
Company's shares while in possession of the material, undisclosed
information regarding the unlicensed growing. No charges have been
laid against CannTrust, any of its subsidiaries or any of the
current directors, officers or employees of CannTrust.
Mr. Paul is a former CannTrust chairman, who resigned all
offices with the Company on July 25,
2019, in response to a demand made by the other members of
CannTrust's board of directors. That demand followed a
recommendation made by a special committee of the CannTrust Board,
which had been appointed earlier to investigate the circumstances
surrounding the Company's non-compliance with Health Canada
regulations and ancillary matters. Mr. Aceto is the Company's
former Chief Executive Officer, who was terminated for cause by the
CannTrust Board on July 25, 2019,
also as a result of the special committee's findings and
recommendations. Mr. Litwin is a former director and vice chairman
of the Company, who resigned from the CannTrust Board on
March 12, 2021.
Since the completion of the special committee's investigation in
2019, CannTrust has been building best in class governance and
compliance structures and processes. Regulatory compliance,
risk management, and effective oversight have become integral to
everything the Company does. In August
2020, CannTrust's operating licenses were restored by Health
Canada and the Company resumed operations shortly thereafter.
CannTrust remains focussed on resolving its civil litigation
claims and fully restoring its operations as a leading Canadian
recreational and medical cannabis producer. The Company anticipates
announcing the engagement of a replacement independent auditor
during the third quarter and has initiated discussions with the OSC
about proposing a plan and timetable for curing CannTrust's
historical disclosure defaults, with a view towards later applying
to the OSC for a discretionary order revoking the OSC's cease-trade
order dated April 13, 2020. Those
discussions remain at a preliminary stage, curing CannTrust's
historical disclosure defaults will require a considerable amount
of management time and expense and there can be no assurance at
this stage that the Company will be successful in obtaining an
order from the OSC or obtaining a listing for CannTrust's common
shares before the end of the year, or at all.
About CannTrust
CannTrust is a federally regulated licensed cannabis
producer. We are proudly Canadian, operating a portfolio of brands
including estora, Liiv and Synr.g, specifically
designed to surprise and delight patients and consumers.
At CannTrust, we are committed to providing an exceptional
customer experience, as well as consistent and quality
products through standardized processes. Our
greenhouse produces Grade A cannabis flower, which is
currently sold in dried flower, oil drops and capsule
formats. Founded in 2013, our continued success in the medical
cannabis market and subsequent expansion into the recreational
business, led to us being named Licensed Producer of the Year at
the Canadian Cannabis Awards 2018.
CannTrust is committed to research and
innovation, investing in developing technologies for new
products in the medical, recreational, and wellness markets, while
contributing to the growing body of evidence-based research
regarding the use and efficacy of cannabis.
Learn more at www.canntrust.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking information" within
the meaning of Canadian Securities laws and "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the
United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995 and other applicable United
States safe harbor laws, and such statements are based upon
CannTrust's current internal expectations, estimates, projections,
assumptions and beliefs and views of future events.
Forward-looking information and forward-looking statements can
be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as
"believes", "expect", "likely", "may", "will", "should", "intend",
"anticipate", "potential", "proposed", "estimate" and other similar
words, including negative and grammatical variations thereof, or
statements that certain events or conditions "may", "would" or
"will" happen, or by discussions of strategy.
The forward-looking information and statements in this news
release include statements relating to the expectation that
CannTrust will announce a successor auditor and the expectation
that CannTrust will settle certain civil litigation claims, emerge
from creditor protection under the CCAA, obtain an order revoking
the cease-trade order and obtain a stock exchange listing for its
common shares. Forward-looking information and statements
necessarily involve known and unknown risks, including, without
limitation: the outcome of the Company's contingent liabilities;
the impact of any regulatory and other investigations; the
Company's ongoing review of strategic and financing alternatives;
risks associated with general economic conditions; adverse industry
events; loss of markets; future legislative and regulatory
developments in Canada,
the United States and elsewhere;
the state of the cannabis industry in Canada generally; the willingness of a public
accounting firm to accept an engagement as the Company's
independent auditor; CannTrust's ability to timely cure its
disclosure defaults and obtain an order revoking the OSC's
cease-trade order; the willingness of a stock exchange to list the
Company's common shares and CannTrust's ability to satisfy the
requirements of such exchange; and, the ability of CannTrust to
successfully implement its business strategies.
Any forward-looking information and statements speak only as of
the date on which they are made, and, except as required by law,
CannTrust does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking information or statements, whether as a result of
new information, future events or otherwise. New factors emerge
from time to time, and it is not possible for CannTrust to predict
all such factors. When considering these forward-looking
information and statements, readers should keep in mind the risk
factors and other cautionary statements in CannTrust's Annual
Information Form dated March 28, 2019
(the "AIF") and filed with the applicable Canadian securities
regulatory authorities on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and filed as an
exhibit CannTrust's Form 40-F annual report under the United States
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, with the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission on EDGAR at www.sec.gov (the
"March 2019 Form 40-F"). The risk
factors and other factors noted in the AIF could cause actual
events or results to differ materially from those described in any
forward-looking information or statements. Readers are also
reminded that CannTrust remains in default of its periodic
disclosure requirements under applicable securities laws and stock
exchange requirements, that its most recent AIF, Form 40-F and
other disclosures do not reflect all risk factors that currently
face the Company, and that the Company has not completed or filed
the restatements of the financial statements included in the AIF or
the March 2019 Form 40-F or otherwise
filed an amendment to such Form 40-F, and that the Company has
determined not to correct its prior filings or make any further
filings in respect of periodic disclosure requirements under
applicable securities laws and stock exchange requirements. None of
the Company's securities is listed for trading on any stock
exchange in any jurisdiction and, in Canada, trading in the Company's securities is
subject to a cease-trade order issued on April 13, 2020 by the Ontario Securities
Commission for CannTrust's failure to comply with its disclosure
obligations under applicable securities laws.
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SOURCE CannTrust Holdings Inc.