Articles
Individual Voluntary Arrangement – Full and Final settlement
An IVA proposal is technically a ‘compromise’ or a deal with your creditors. The deal is that you will make payments from your monthly income, typically for five years. These monies, less the fees for setting up and running the IVA are then paid to your creditors.
Individual Voluntary Arrangements – Pros and Cons
An IVA is a good solution because:
Interest on your debts is frozen and your loan and card repayments go to the IVA fund
How does an IVA deal with the equity in my house?
Your creditors will expect to get their hands on the equity in your house as part of your IVA. There’s a simple reason – if there is equity and you don’t offer it up, they don’t have to support your IVA.
Bankruptcy – Pros and Cons
Disadvantages of bankruptcy:
Any equity in your house belongs to the Official Receiver, not you. If you can’t afford to buy the Official Receiver out, he can force the repossession and sale of your property. You may lose your house.
Help! There’s a Bailiff at my door!
A visit from a bailiff – to your business or home – can be a distressing experience, so it is useful to know the rights and powers that a bailiff has.
Protection from Bailiffs
The business was a small, family owned metalworking company in Cheshire. They had taken on an employee a number of months ago who, in contravention of both his training and common sense managed to injure himself in an industrial accident.
Keeping Landlords in their place
We met the directors of a small joinery company. The business had been trading for eight years but the downturn in the construction market sector affected them badly; increasingly competitive tendering and cost over runs had resulted in losses. The company were also committed to a loss making contract.
Protecting Director’s Guarantees
We were appointed as Liquidators of a plant hire company. In addition to a number of recent asset purchases subject to finance obligations, the company had a large stock of plant free of finance obligations and a debtor book free of any encumbrance. The company operated from a rented yard.
Evicting a Minority Shareholder
A three way shareholder dispute was referred to us by a solicitor. Two brothers and a third party had set up an internet trading business; all were shareholders and directors. There was, of course, no shareholder agreement. In the inevitable falling out, legal bills started to mount. By the time we were instructed, the arguing had gone on for a year. The third party had been dismissed as a director but there was no resolution of the dispute in sight.
Instant Protection from a warrant
I was asked to meet the director of a children’s play facility on a Wednesday afternoon. The business had a healthy order book for children’s parties and a regular stream of kids and their parents every day.