Officers to help liquidator

Offence title:

Officers to help liquidator

Act:

530A Corporations Act

Offence:

(1)   As soon as practicable after a court orders a company wound up or appoints a provisional liquidator, or the company resolves it ne wound up, each officer of the company must:

(a)   Deliver to the [provisional] liquidator all books of the company in the officer’s possession, save those the officer is entitled, as against the company or [provisional] liquidator, to retain; and

(b)   if the officer knows where other books relating to the company are—tell the liquidator or provisional liquidator where those books are.

(2)   Where a company is being wound up, or a provisional liquidator of the company is acting, an officer of the company must:

(a)   Attend upon the [provisional] liquidator; and

(b)   Give them such information about the company’s business, property, affairs and financial circumstances; and

(c)    attend such meetings of the company’s creditors or members;

as the [provisional] liquidator reasonably requires.

(3)   An officer of a company that is being wound up must do whatever the liquidator reasonably requires the officer to do to help in the winding up.

(4)   An officer of a company must do whatever a provisional liquidator of the company reasonably requires the officer to do to help in the performance or exercise of any of the provisional liquidator’s functions and powers.

(5)   The [provisional] liquidator of a company may require an officer of the company:

(a)   to tell the liquidator the officer’s residential address and work or business address; or

(b)   to keep the liquidator informed of any change in either of those addresses that happens during the winding up.

(6)   A person must not fail to comply with subsection (1), (2), (3) or (4), or with a requirement under subsection (5).

Penalty:

(1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) - 120 penalty units per offence.

Summary/Indictable/mixed:

Summary

Jurisdiction:

Local Court

How committed:

(1)   After the court has ordered the company be wound up, a director fails, within a reasonable time, to deliver to the liquidator the books of the company.

(2)   After the appointment, by a court, of a provisional liquidator, a senior manager of the company fails to attend on the provisional liquidator give information about the company’s business or attend meeting s of the creditors or members as reasonably required by the provisional liquidator.

(3)   The general manager of the company refuses to help the liquidator in the winding up of the business.

(4)   The general manager of the company continually fails to assist the liquidator in the exercise of their functions and powers.

(5)   The managing director refuses to tell the liquidator his residential or work or business address or the fact of a move that has occurred during the winding up.

Important note:

Defence: reasonable excuse

(7)   For the purposes of this section, officer includes a former officer.