August 2006
Introduction
i when would the Official Receiver decide to hold a first meeting?
When the official receiver becomes aware that there are sufficient realisable assets to justify the appointment by the creditors of an Insolvency Practitioner (IP) as trustee or liquidator a meeting of creditors should be called. The official receiver may also decide to hold a meeting in a case where an Insolvency Practitioner (IP) is willing to act and has the support of creditors despite there being no assets but such events are rare.
A decision as to whether to call a meeting is normally made by the examiner following completion of the Case Assessment Record (CAR) on LOIS.
ii is there any time when a first meeting must be held?
If 25% in value of the creditors have requested a meeting, provided all the requirements are met, then the official receiver must hold one. For more information on this subject please refer to the Case Help Manual: Meetings: Part VI - Requisitioned Meetings.
iii who is told about the meeting?
The official receiver is required to inform:
iv does the bankrupt or company's officers have to attend?
It depends on whether the official receiver requires them to attend or not. An appropriate letter is sent to the bankrupt and company officers stating whether or not their attendance at the meeting is required.
v what notices and forms need to be sent out?
As stated earlier, the official receiver is required to send notice of the meeting to all known creditors, contributories, the bankrupt and the court . This is an appropriate time to also issue the official receiver's report to creditors. Most importantly, the creditors and contributories must receive a proof of debt form together with a proxy form for voting purposes. Obviously, a proof of debt and proxy form would not be sent to the bankrupt or the court.
vi why does the meeting have to be advertised?
The official receiver is required to advertise the meeting in a local newspaper. Advertising is a way of telling people about the meeting who would not know any other way e.g. creditors who for some reason have not been included in the Preliminary Information Questionnaire (PIQ) or statement of affairs. The notice advertising the meeting should appear in the newspaper no less than 21 days before the meeting.
vii what if there are a lot of creditors?
If the number of creditors makes it impractical for notices to be sent out in the usual way, the official receiver may obtain permission from the court to merely advertise the meeting. This should only happen in exceptional circumstances, for example where an insurance company has many policy holders. An application to court must also be made in these circumstances for an order dispensing with the requirement to send out proofs and other documents to all creditors.
viii how much notice is given of the meeting?
Creditors, contributories (in companies), the bankrupt and where appropriate company officers must be given at least 21 days notice of the meeting.
In practice, this means sending out the notices at least 28 days before the meeting is to be held.
ix what are the time limits for lodging proofs?
The official receiver is required to accept proofs and proxies until 12 noon on the working day before the meeting, unless there are more than 25 creditors when the official receiver may set an earlier deadline. That deadline must not, however, be more than 4 days before the date of the meeting.
Note:
Where can I find out more?
Technical Manual Chapter 16, particularly paras.16.20 - 16.27.
The Insolvency Rules:
Rules 4.50 and 6.79 First Meeting
4.57-4.60 Company meetings and
6.83- 6.86 Bankruptcy meetings
The Insolvency Act:
Section 136 Functions of Official Receiver as liquidator
Section 293 Summoning of a meeting to appoint first trustee
Forms to be used:
| NFM | Notice of First Meeting |
| NFN3 | Notice for newspaper covering advertisement of calling a meeting |
| NMBO |
Notice to a bankrupt/company officer or partner of a meeting and whether their attendance at the meeting is or is not required |
| POD | Proof of Debt form |
| PROXY | Proxy form |
Click HERE to view the flowchart for Calling a Meeting
Procedure
LOIS screen references are given in brackets e.g. (DO73).
1. Receive instruction from the examiner that a meeting is to be held, together with an approved draft of the report to creditors (CAR A form) according to the practice within your local office.
2. Arrange an appropriate date and time for the meeting to be held, ensuring that creditors will receive at least 21 days notice before the meeting. You should allocate a minimum of 28 days to allow sufficient time for posting, etc. Confirm that the meeting will be held within 4 months of the insolvency order. If not, apply to the court for an extension of time.
3. Where an extension of time has been applied for await the return of the order from court before sending out the notices to the creditors (and contributories in a company).
4. Prepare the Notice of First Meeting (NFM) on LOIS (DO73) stating the date and time of the meeting. Send this to all known creditors with:
5. Prepare and send form NMBO on LOIS (DO73) to the bankrupt and company officers quoting the date and time of the meeting. Also state whether or not the bankrupt or company officers are required to attend. The examiner will inform you of this. Ensure that the list of creditors on LOIS is complete, including any references, etc (CA31).
6. Prepare the notice advertising the meeting in a local newspaper (NFN3) and arrange for its publication with the ORs' advertising agents. For further information on this procedure please refer to the Case Help Manual: Gazetting and Advertising.
The creditors must receive their notice at least 21 days before the meeting.
7. File a copy of form NFM at court together with an RTC. Record the meetings date in the diary according to your local office practice and update LOIS (CA21).
After the meetings notices have all been sent
8. Deal with all proofs and proxies as they arrive ensuring that LOIS is regularly updated with creditors information (CA31). For further information on this please refer to the Case Help Manual: Dealing with Proofs and Proxies.