Former Castle Manor owner suing province

A former owner of the Castle Manor in Moncton is suing the provincial government after her special care home went bankrupt.

Jeanne Larocque contends the Department of Social Development had no right to shut down her business and is seeking compensation.

Larocque says she paid $1.75 million to buy thehistoric castle-like building in downtown Moncton after she was given a licence to operate a special care home in 2006.

But then her licence wasn't renewed.

In her statement of claim, Larocqueaccusesthe provincialgovernmentof acting in bad faithby not givingher proper notice andleaving no opportunity to remedy any of the problems.

Without a licence, the value of the century-old property dropped to practically nothing, she claims.

In a statement of defence, however, the provincial governmentargues Larocque was warned she wasn't taking proper care of the residents.

In addition, Larocquedid not comply with provincial rules on the ratio of patients to employees, the documents state.

Her relationship with residents was "inappropriate" and she hired people who weren't properly qualified, the province claims.

The manor was shut down in 2008 because the situation had become dangerous, according to the documents.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

A trial date has not yet been set.