Associate
judge Bell accepted consumer price index increases and movements in salaries
justified new hourly rates for insolvency specialists ranging from $485-$550
for liquidators, $315-$385 for managers and $140 for support staff. PricewaterhouseCoopers had not asked for any
increase since 2004. Others appointed as
liquidators by the court are expected to fall in with PwC’s new rates.
Payments
for court-appointed liquidators come out of assets recovered in a
liquidation. Often not enough is
recovered to pay liquidators in full, let alone provide any return for unpaid
creditors. Inland Revenue is by far the
most frequent creditor filing in court to have a company liquidated. Defaulting
corporate taxpayers are usually small to medium businesses with few assets of
any value. Inland Revenue told the court
it had no objection to PwC’s request for an increased pay scale. PwC is
currently handling about 500 liquidations, 240 out of its Auckland office.
Liquidators’
strategies for recovering cash in an insolvent liquidation have changed in
recent years. Judicial rulings have made
it more difficult to claw back from creditors payments received prior to
liquidation. Liquidators now concentrate
on directors of insolvent companies; claiming damages from them for reckless
trading, trading whilst insolvent and failing to keep proper accounting
records.
re Apollo Bathroom and Kitchen Ltd – High Court (26.01.18)
18.028