Providing assistance for individuals and sole traders/partnerships

There are various options available in relation to personal insolvency when people are undergoing personal cash flow difficulties and cannot pay the debt(s) they have incurred. We have been working in this field for over 20 years and have dealt with hundreds of contentious and non-contentious personal insolvency cases. We thrive to offer a 1st class straight forward advice to clients and work closely with specialist Barristers in this area. We offer honest and reliable service and treat all clients with respect and integrity.

Personal insolvency options can include:

• Bankruptcy
• Individual Voluntary Agreements (IVA)
• Debt Relief Orders (DRO)

Taking the next steps…

It is of great importance that you do not ignore the debt(s), as it is highly likely to get worse if left too late. Additionally, try to avoid borrowing more money as this will magnify your issues. If you are experiencing financial difficulties and pressure from creditors’ we are always available to guide you throughout. Please seek advice from us to guide you in what to do next.

Bankruptcy

We advise both trustees in bankruptcy and individuals on all debt related and other issues in a bankruptcy. Acting for both trustees in bankruptcy and individuals allows us to diligently advice individuals when they may be insolvent or heading towards bankruptcy and the options available to them. We also advise both trustees in bankruptcy and individuals on all personal insolvency issues such as antecedent transactions.

We appreciate that the first point of concern for an individual heading toward insolvency may be their main residential home and other assets that they may have. We seek to review every possible option available and how best to minimise one’s liability. We are able to negotiate on behalf of trustees as well as individuals in relation to realisation of assets.

Individual Voluntary Arrangement

This is an arrangement where an individual agrees with his creditors to repay the debt over a period of time to avoid being made bankrupt. Generally, there is a requirement that majority of the creditors usually being 75% or more should vote in favour of any offer put forward by the individual. Once the approval is given by the creditors, this will then bind all the creditors including those who may have not voted in favour of the offer and creditors that did not participate in the voting. We also advise creditors on any challenges to an individual voluntary arrangement in particular because we also act for supervisors of individual voluntary arrangement in advising them on interpretation of the terms of the arrangement.

Debt Relief Orders (DRO)

A DRO is only available from an authorised debt adviser. A DRO is a method used to write off debts which are £20,000 or less, you do not own your own home, do not have other assets or things of value of more than £1,000 and your income is no more than £50 over each month after payment of usual household expenses. When this is in place you usually there are restrictions usually, for 12 months in that you are not able to borrow more than £500 without informing the lender of the DRO. You cannot also act as a company director while the DRO is ins place or create, manage or promote a company without the court’s permission. There are also restrictions on managing a business without telling those who you carry out business with about your DRO. A DRO may not always be the suitable option for individuals, and we would request you to please seek legal advice from us before applying for a DRO.