LEXLAW Solicitors & Barristers
A time-to-pay proposal enables a debtor to negotiate structured repayment terms with creditors, creating a legal pathway to avoid insolvency while ensuring creditors’ rights are protected. Commonly sought by companies with tax arrears, such arrangements require careful preparation and timely negotiation to maximise acceptance.
The High Court refused a summary judgment application by Sampson Coward LLP, a Salisbury-based law firm, over its handling of £2 million in escrow funds, allegedly misapplied while acting for connected parties, following assignment of the claims to litigation funder Manolete Partners.
The High Court ordered Dr Amir Matta, director of Saint George Investment Holdings Ltd, to repay £1.43 million after he misapplied company funds for personal expenses, breaching his statutory duties under the Companies Act 2006 and authorising unsubstantiated payments to connected parties during a period of financial distress.
The High Court ordered Norman Freed to repay £918,590 after causing Just Recruit Group Ltd to make substantial payments to connected companies while insolvent, breaching his fiduciary duties under the Companies Act 2006.
The Court of Appeal upheld the High Court’s dismissal of Manolete Partners’ £849,278 claim against director Ebrahim Dalal, finding the evidence for alleged unreported sales too weak to meet the civil standard of proof. The case underscores the evidential challenges liquidators face when pursuing directors for purported accounting deficiencies.