Media Articles

I’m not paying you Mr Liquidator : sue me!

When a liquidator is appointed to a company, a key task is to identify, value and recover assets. Where that asset is, say, a car that is not subject to finance, selling it at auction is a straightforward process. However, a large chunk of value is often reflected in...

HMRC : standing in line for payment like everyone else

My June article referred to various options for helping to deal with creditor pressure now that trading activity is resuming : always assuming that the business can source both product and staff. The view expressed was that over-stretching the business/personal cash flow programme is unlikely to prove fruitful if...

The often unreported experiences in the daily life of an insolvency practitioner

Reflecting upon 2020, one cannot deny that we have all faced interesting challenges and, as a licensed insolvency practitioner, much of my work has involved dealing with the failure of businesses in the hospitality, leisure and retail sectors, and one suspects that these will continue to experience difficulty in...

Wrongful trading is back should I be worried?

When the Insolvency Act 1986  became the principal law applicable to corporate insolvency in April 1986, there was much discussion around section 214 because it introduced the concept of wrongful trading in the form of personal liability falling upon a director in respect of certain unpaid company debts in...

Delinquent directors – the long arm of the law may become a little longer

A large number of people in Scotland operate as either a sole trader or partnership, preferring the flexibility compared with a limited liability company or LLP.  All types of trades and professions have self-employed people, and we have all read media reports of complaints that the level of Government...

Dealing with creditor pressure until normality returns

A large number of people in Scotland operate as either a sole trader or partnership, preferring the flexibility compared with a limited liability company or LLP.  All types of trades and professions have self-employed people, and we have all read media reports of complaints that the level of Government...

Can we save our fishing industry from collapse?

Whether it is the continuing impact of Covid-19 or the more recently reported effects of  Brexit, media comments proliferate about the financial distress faced by numerous businesses in Scotland who are involved with fish catching/processing/selling.  Although a fund has been established by the UK Government to try and help...

Selling the High Street

Our high streets have witnessed significant changes in recent years as a result of the collapse of well known names such as Jaeger, BHS, Woolworths, Victoria’s Secret, Laura Ashley and DW Sports.  More recently, the Arcadia Group (Topshop, Burton, Wallis, Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins) and Debenhams have collapsed and...

Keeping the business dream alive

The fluctuating nature of Covid-19 restrictions, particularly for businesses, has made it difficult to keep going, never mind maintain hope that a profitable basis of trading lies just around the corner. Of course, some businesses have performed well as a result of Covid-19 : think food chain, doorstep delivery...

The wide and varied role of an insolvency practitioner

Reflecting upon 2020, one cannot deny that we have all faced interesting challenges and, as a licensed insolvency practitioner, much of my work has involved dealing with the failure of businesses in the hospitality, leisure and retail sectors, and one suspects that these will continue to experience difficulty in...