Commitments and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Nov. 30, 2022

Commitments and Contingencies [Abstract]

Commitments and Contingencies

Note 11 – Commitments and Contingencies

The Company entered into an office lease in Sunrise, Florida where we leased approximately 5,279 square feet of office space at 1560 Sawgrass Corporate Parkway, Suite 130, Sunrise, Florida 33323. In accordance with the terms of the office space lease agreement, the Company will be renting the commercial office space, for a term of almost eight years from March 1, 2021, through July 31, 2028. As per the Separation Agreement by and between the Company, Reinhart/Zappware and NextTrip, however, the Company has transferred the office lease contract to NextTrip from May 1, 2022 onwards and therefore presented under assets and liabilities held for sale. On August 25, 2022, the Company entered into an office lease in Sunrise, Florida for a term of six months from September 1, 2022, through January 30, 2023. Additionally, the Group rents office space located in Puerto Rico and Thailand with lease terms ranging from five to nine years.

The following schedule represents obligations and commitments on the part of the Company:

	Current		Long Term
	FYE 2023		FYE 2024		Totals
Office Leases	$	230,432	$	293,842	$	524,274
Insurance and Other		1,800		7,200		9,000
Totals	$	232,232	$	301,042	$	533,274

Legal Matters 

The Company is involved, from time to time, in litigation, other legal claims and proceedings involving matters associated with or incidental to our business, including, among other things, matters involving breach of contract claims, intellectual property, employment issues, and other related claims and vendor matters. The Company believes that the resolution of currently pending matters could individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations. However, assessment of the current litigation or other legal claims could change considering the discovery of facts not presently known to the Company or by judges, juries or other finders of fact, which are not in accord with management’s evaluation of the possible liability or outcome of such litigation or claims.

IDS Settlement

On August 15, 2019, the Company entered into an Intellectual Property Purchase Agreement with IDS Inc. (“IDS” and the “IP Purchase Agreement”). Pursuant to the agreement, the Company purchased certain proprietary technology from IDS for the reservation and booking of air travel, hotel accommodations, car rentals, and ancillary products, services, and amenities, integration of the same with the providers of such products and services, associated functions, including website addresses, patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets relating thereto, and all goodwill associated therewith (collectively, the “IP Assets”). In consideration for the purchase, the Company issued IDS 98,400 restricted shares of Company common stock (the “IDS Shares”) valued at $50.00 per share, or $4,920,000 in the aggregate.

On April 27, 2020, the Company filed a verified complaint for injunctive relief against IDS and TD Assets Holding, LLC (“TD Asset”), Navarro McKown, Aaron McKown and Ari Daniels, which parties are affiliated with IDS, in the Circuit Court of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit in and for Broward County, Florida (Case No. CACE-20-007088). Pursuant to the complaint, the Company alleged causes of action against the defendants, including IDS, based on among other things, fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, aiding and abetting fraud, rescission, and breach of contract, and sought a temporary and permanent injunction against the defendants, requiring such persons to return the 98,400 IDS Shares issued pursuant to the terms of the IP Purchase Agreement and preventing such persons from selling or transferring any IDS Shares, sought damages from the defendants, rescission of the IP Purchase Agreement, attorneys fees and other amounts. The defendants subsequently filed various counterclaims against the Company.

On April 29, 2020, the Company filed a Verified Motion for Temporary Injunction (the “Injunction Motion”). Defendants IDS, TD Assets, and Ari Daniels filed an answer, affirmative defenses, and counterclaims (the “Answer and Counterclaim”). The Answer and Counterclaim included alleged breach of contract and tort claims against the Company. On September 17, 2020, the Company moved to strike the affirmative defenses and dismiss the counterclaims. On October 15, 2020, defendants IDS, TD Assets, and Ari Daniels filed an amended Answer and Counterclaim, including alleged breach of contract, tort, and federal securities claims against the Company, Mr. William Kerby, our Co-Chief Executive Officer and an employee of the Company.

On July 27, 2020, the Company entered into a confidential settlement agreement with certain of the defendants in the IDS matter, Navarro Hernandez, P.L., Aaron M. McKown, and Jeffery S. Bailey. The settlement provided for mutual releases of the parties and amounts payable from such parties to the Company in four tranches, in consideration for such settlement, of which all such payments have been timely paid pursuant to the terms of the settlement.

The remaining parties to the litigation subsequently attempted to mediate their claims pursuant to a court ordered mediation in February 2021.

Effective on May 18, 2021, the Company, IDS, TD Asset and Ari Daniels, the principal of IDS, entered into an Amendment to Intellectual Property Purchase Agreement (the “IP Purchase Amendment”). Pursuant to the IP Purchase Agreement, the parties amended the IP Purchase Agreement, with the Company agreeing to make a payment to IDS in the amount of $2,850,000 (the “Payment”), payable by way of an initial payment of $500,000, and twelve monthly payments of approximately $195,833 (collectively, the “Required Payments”), with such monthly payments beginning 30 days after the initial payment, which is due seven days after the date of the IP Purchase Amendment. Such monthly payments may be pre-paid at any time without penalty. At the Company’s option, any portion of the amount due may be paid to IDS by a party separate from the Company (either a related party of the Company or a third-party) (a “Paying Party”), for the benefit of the Company, which shall be treated for all purposes as a payment by the Company. As consideration for such Paying Party making such payment on behalf of the Company, IDS agreed to transfer the Paying Party a number of the IDS Shares equal to the amount of the cash payment(s) made by a Paying Party multiplied by 0.03444 as to the first $500,000 payment, and 0.03455 as to the monthly payments (as applicable, the “Applicable Portion” of the IDS Shares). Upon each payment of amounts due to IDS pursuant to the terms of the IP Agreement Amendment as discussed above by the Company (instead of a Paying Party), IDS agreed to transfer the portion of the IDS Shares equal to the Applicable Portion, to the Company.

Pursuant to the IP Purchase Amendment, on May 19, 2021, the Company made the initial payment of $500,000. Thereafter, the first 17,220 shares of common stock repurchased by the Company were returned to treasury and cancelled.

On September 27, 2021, the Court entered the Agreed Order. The Court ordered that:

(i) the Company resume the monthly payment on or before September 28, 2021 (which payment has not been made due to failure of IDS to provide required documents);

(ii) $24,583.33 shall be paid monthly to one of IDS’s counsel and the balance of each payment shall be paid to the IDS Defendants;

(iii) $20,000 of the 12^th monthly payments shall be withheld pending further order of the court; and

(iv) NextPlay (formerly Monaker) was awarded its fees and costs associated with the filing of the Motion.

The entire IDS Settlement, agreements, and amendment are part of the proposed sale of NextTrip, whereby upon closing of the proposed transaction, the IDS settlement will no longer be a responsibility of the Company; provided, however, that, if the Company fails to make certain required installment payments to NextTrip within five (5) business days of being due, such IDS payment obligations will revert back to the Company. As of November 30, 2022, the Company failed to make such payments and is in progress of mediation.

Litigation between Axion and NextPlay

On January 15, 2021, Axion filed a civil claim in the Supreme Court of British Columbia (Action No. S-209245), against J. Todd Bonner, Chairman of the Company’s board of directors, Nithinan Boonyawattanapisut, our Co-Chief Executive Officer and director, the Company, William Kerby, our Co-Chief Executive Officer, Cern One Limited, Red Anchor Trading Corp., CC Asia Pacific Ventures Ltd., HotPlay, HotPlay (Thailand) Ltd., Next Fintech Holdings, Inc. (formerly Longroot, Inc.). and certain other parties. The claim alleges that Mr. Bonner and his wife, Ms. Boonyawattanapisut, used their positions as directors and officers of Axion and certain of its subsidiaries, together with the other defendants, to unlawfully take ownership of Axion’s subsidiaries and assets, including its intellectual property. Axion’s claim includes causes of action for conspiracy and fraud; theft of Axion intellectual property and ownership of Longroot; an investor scheme; breaches of fiduciary duty by Mr. Bonner and Ms. Boonyawattanapisut and others; negligence; knowing assistance of breach of fiduciary duty; collective trust; knowing receipt of trust property; knowing assistance in dishonest conduct; unjust enrichment; and breach of honest performance. The claim seeks general and special damages for conspiracy, damages for breaches of fiduciary duties, accountings and repayments of amounts alleged improperly paid, including to the Company, interim, interlocutory and permanent injunctions, rescission of the issuance of shares of Longroot Cayman; restitution; the return of Axion’s intellectual property; and other accountings, damages, punitive damages, interest and special costs.

On April 9, 2021, the Company, on behalf of itself, Mr. Kerby and Next Fintech Holdings, Inc. (formerly Longroot, Inc.), filed a response to Axion’s claim whereby all such parties disputed Axion’s claims and argued all such transactions involving the Company, Mr. Kerby and Next Fintech which are the subject of Axion’s claims were legitimate and pleading various other defenses. The Company, Mr. Kerby and Next Fintech dispute Axion’s claims and continue to vigorously defend themselves against the allegations made.

The lawsuit states that J. Todd Bonner, Nithinan ‘Jess’ Boonyawattanapisut, Cern One Limited, and Red Anchor Trading Corp. made loans totaling USD $9,141,372 to the defendants at various times between March 2018 and June 2020. Mr. Bonner is the Co-Chairman of NextPlay, and a past CEO and Director of Axion. His wife, Ms. Boonyawattanapisut, is the Co-CEO of NextPlay. On or about July 21, 2020, the Company and the lenders entered into a share exchange agreement whereby the lenders transferred rights to repayment of USD $7,657,023 of the debt owed by defendants plus interest to the Company, in exchange for Company stock or warrants. On or about August 23, 2021, counsel for NextPlay demanded repayment of the debts owed by the defendants, and defendants have not paid any portion of the amounts due.

On September 1, 2021, the Company filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of British Columbia (Action No. S-217835) under the Canadian Foreign Money Claims Act (R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 155). The defendants are Axion; Axion Interactive Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Axion; and Ying Pei Digital Technology (Shanghai) Company Ltd., a Chinese wholly-owned subsidiary of Axion. NextPlay owns approximately 33.85% of the outstanding shares of Axion.

The Company alleges debts that the defendants refuse to pay totaling USD $7,657,023, under various promissory notes and loan agreements acquired by the Company in July 2020. The Company also seeks interest on the past-due amounts and costs associated with collection.

In November 2021, the Company commenced a new claim for the debt claimed to reflect the difference between what was owed and what the Company is claiming to avoid double-claiming.

In February 2022, the court was receptive to loans related evidence (e.g. loan agreements, bank statements, board resolutions, etc.), and that it will be further resolved together with other Axion issues in the next trial. The summary trial judge has advised that he wishes to take case management over this and several related proceedings, It is anticipated that the trial of this action would be reset for 12 weeks sometime in 2023 or early 2024, a new trial date has not been determined. Document and oral discovery are ongoing, which will be necessary for the parties to make full disclosure on all issues.

As of November 30, 2022, there has been no significant update in the court proceedings.