Ltd Company still trading but won't pay up...

[Gill.Mackie]

A Ltd Company who is claiming to no longer be trading and have no assetts is owe me in excess of �2000. They are not insolvent but now under the control of a Managment Consultant. I have written proof they are still trading but no-one will help. I have tried my solicitor, trading standards, companies house and my MP but everyone says there is nothing I can do. To issue a winding-up order would be throwing good money after bad if they are claiming to have no assetts - can anyone suggest anything? Please?!

[Oneeyedvic]

this maybe not what you want to here but If they have no assets then how do you expect to get any money from them? Since tehy are a limited company, you will have no redress with the director(s) of the business.

The only thing I can suggest is that if you think that the company does have some worthwhile assets, that you issue the winding up petition. This focuses the mind very quickly.

[WendyS]

Am no expert on this at all, but do they really have NO assets at all? I imagine most companies probably need a minimum of a computer or two, a telephone and printer to function. Probably not worth seizing, but as Oneeyedvic says, the loss of these might make them reconsider their position if they couldn't operate without them.

[stanleyman]

All you can do is bide your time until this company is in a position to pay you. You must take court action within six years of the due date, then you have another six years to get your money.

[Hgrove]

I suggest you contact a Law Centre. Ask a Citizen Advice Bureau where your nearest Law Centre is. Also, try other solicitors. I would not be convinced there is nothing that can be done until at least three solicitors have told me. The solicitor you tried may (no offence intended) have been busy/lazy/incompetent.

[Buenchico]

(Posted in 2 parts):

Given that you've asked several 'experts' already, it's unlikely that anyone here on AnswerBank will be able to do much - but that doesn't stop me from having a go!

The first thing to do has to be to find out exactly what the trading position is. As I see it, there are 3 possibilities:

1. The firm is trading as normal (i.e.without any legal constraints) and have simply empowered a management consultant to run their affairs.

2. The firm has gone into administration.

3. The firm has gone into administrative receivership.

In situation number 1, you could consider the possibility of making a claim via the Small Claims Court. (Your local CAB can advise you). This does involve a relatively small outlay on your part (in court fees) but, if you believe that the company may have some hidden assets, it might be worth getting a court order against them.

[Buenchico]

(2nd Part):

In situation number 2, someone (possibly that management consultant?) has to be a licensed administrator who has been appointed by a court to run the company's affairs. If so, the administrator has to arrange a creditors' meeting within 10 weeks of the company going into administration. The basic objective is to keep the company afloat by getting the creditors to accept only partial payment of debts. So, if this situation applies here, you might get the offer of receiving some, but not all, of your money. (This procedure has been used by a number of profesional football clubs, e.g. Leeds Utd FC and Ipswich Town FC, to save them from bankruptcy).

In situation number 3, someone (usually an accountant from a firm of insolvency practitioners - not, please note, a management consultant) will have been apponted to assess the comany's position. In theory, the company might be able to continue trading but, in practice the company is effectively 'dead' and unsecured creditors are almost certain to receive nothing.

So, as I've said, the first thing to do is to find out which of these 3 situations is the current one. If they're still trading, No.3 is unlikely. If No.2 applies you need to find out when and where the creditors' meeting will be held. If No.1 is appropriate you need to ask yourself whether you're prepared to risk paying the court fees to obtain an order against the firm.

Whatever action you decide upon, the sad truth is that you can't 'get blood out of a stone'. What you can do, however, is to make life very unpleasant for the directors of the company. I'm sure that the local newspaper for the area where this company is based would be very interested to know about your problems with this company. (You might just find that they suddenly find the funds to pay you!).

Chris