if a director files form DS01 to dissolve the company I believe he has a duty to inform the creditors of the action being taken. does the same duty arise where the company is dissolved informally by Companies House due to non filing of documents?? if so can anybody please direct me to the relevant part of the Act? sorry about layout; enter button not working on this site; bloody infuriating!!!!
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How...
...would Companies House know who was owed what, if the accounts had not been submitted?
think we're at crossed purposes
its not companies house's responsibility to establish creditors in any case. What I'm trying to establish is the directors responsibilities of informing creditors when he allows a company to be struck off by companies house as opposed to asking companies house to strike it off!
If the company has already been struck off it is too late. If the company is just under threat of striking off the director's priority surely is to bend over backwards to prevent it happening at all costs. Does he realise that all the company's assets will be forfeit to the Crown?
its already been struck off
I appreciate that things are too late; but i'm trying to establish what the duties are as a director in these instances. am I right in saying that if a director files form DS01 to strike off then he has a duty to inform creditors as to that action?? assuming my understanding of the above is correct; does the director also have a duty in accordance with Companies Act to inform creditors is he is allowing Companies House to strike it off themselves without filing DS01?? Basically a client of ours is owed money by a limited company which has now been struck off; they were not informed of the proposal to striking off and did not think to check Companies House or the London Gazette every week. They have filed a claim against the director (sole director and shareholder), however the expected defence has come back that the debt is not his. So they are wondering if the director has acted lawfully in accordance with the Act in allowing the company to perish via non filing of docs.
Sorry assumed you were acting for the company in question not one of its creditors!
You're right about directors' duties when applying for voluntary striking off.
Your client needs to talk to an insolvency lawyer. A simple claim recover the debt from the shareholder will not work, as you have discovered. One sequence of events to consider is re-instatement of the company followed by appointment of liquidator, followed by obtaining release of assets held by the Crown as bona vacantia. Liquidator will also consider conduct of director. Whether all this, or anything like it, can be made to stand up legally is why your client needs legal advice. Client must be careful not to throw good money after bad.
cheers john
yeah its not for a lot of money; what's really annoying is the initial gazette letter was in October and the company asked our client to do some work for them in November so its clear they really had no intention of paying. suppose our client ought to have looked into at the time!
Well that raises another issue that the director was not acting in good faith. But again your client needs legal advice on his remedies.