A company spent years protecting its executives. Then it tried to make them pay

A holding company quietly shielded its senior executives from a risky share-purchase deal for years, then tried to hold them personally liable when the shares collapsed. A Nova Scotia judge dismissed every claim against them.

The decision came down on June 12, 2026, when Justice Glen G. McDougall of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia dismissed a lawsuit by Thornridge Holdings Limited against ten executives and employees of Envirosystems Inc., a waste-management firm Thornridge once owned outright. Thornridge had loaned them a total principal sum of $2,154,888 to buy shares in a 2015 sale, then demanded full repayment with interest after the shares sold for less than the loans were worth.

A side deal

When private equity firm TorQuest Partners bought a majority stake in Envirosystems in 2015, it insisted that key employees take an "at risk" stake. None were shareholders, so Thornridge financed their purchases with promissory notes and share pledges that, on paper, left the employees fully liable.

Behind the scenes, Thornridge's then-president and chief operating officer arranged a separate document naming two executives, Michael Ryan and Michael Tringali, as agents who could settle the loans for nothing if the shares fell. The decision summed up the effect: "while the promissory notes would appear to be full recourse, the agency agreement, which TorQuest would never see, would protect the defendant...

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