The judge in Canoo bankruptcy prevents a mysterious financier from attempting to undermine the sale of EV startup assets.

At a hearing Tuesday, Judge Brendan Linehan Shannon ruled that the financier of the British man, Charles Garson, lacked one to demand a sale to Canoo's own CEO. Although Garson told the court he was willing to pay up to $20 million for Canoo's assets, he missed the deadline for the formal bid. Garson also never made clear where he purchased the money, leading to bankruptcy trustees’ concerns as the Foreign Investment Commission could block bids in the U.S.

The last remaining challenge to asset sales comes from Harbinger Motors, a commercial electric truck startup created by a handful of former CANOO employees. Oppose the sale before finalizing it in April. The judge denied Harbinger's objection, but the company has since appealed the decision.

Garson's attorney Jason Angelo has eliminated his client's attempt to be "David and Giant Material". Angelo's attempt to bring a case at the hearing, a conversation Garson had with the bankruptcy trustee (which had been sealed to court) led him to believe that he would have to make a formal bid until the end of April. He also repeated Garson's original documents about the unfair claim that the deal was ultimately taken to Canoo's CEO Anthony Aquila.

“I think it makes sense to allow redo here, so to speak,” Angelo said with the “sincerity and seriousness” of his clients. "I know, I know a lot."

Mark Felger, the attorney representing the bankruptcy trustee, disagrees with few disputes and negotiations are fair.

"We think it's very clear in terms of facts. She said, without him saying it," he told the judge. "Your honor, it's all in the email. I've read it a lot many times. I can't see any misunderstanding. I can't see any deception. It's obvious how we did it. He knows the ninth sales hearing and he chose not to submit anything."

Regarding the fairness of the sales process, Ferger said he and the trustees “focused on this internal sales (to the CEO).

"But they are the right people, and we've tried to negotiate. We've come to this agreement twelve times," he said. Ferger also repeated the claims made by the trustees in earlier documents and testimony that the cost of maintaining CANOO assets, especially their battery packs, is to spend too much money. He said delaying the sales process for too long can damage the value of the estate.

Judge Shannon quickly ruled Garson after hearing debates between Angelo, Felger and Aquila attorneys. He said the financier lacked a motion to defend the sale because Canoo did not owe him any money and did not submit a formal bid by the deadline.

“I sympathize with Mr. Garson’s frustration with me and satisfaction, a real interest in providing excellent bids and buying these assets,” Shannon said. “But it was a complex process carried out by the trustees in Chapter 7, and I don’t think Mr. Garson could address what the process was and what was necessary to fully participate in it.”

Shannon also noted that from the outset, the trustees identified who Aquila was and that his role as CEO alone did not prevent him from buying the company’s assets.

"I'm late for the process and hope to have the opportunity to participate and enter my bid. While the results are not what I hoped, I respect the court's decision and would like to congratulate Tony Aquila on it," Garson said in a statement from TechCrunch.

Charles Garson's statement has updated the story.