16then
By the way, your timing for bankruptcy in Scotland is perfect, as new legislation will be enacted early next year which will bring the Scottish experience closer to the Irish experience. The preferred UK destination for bankruptcy will now be England & Wales.
Best of luck.
Jim Stafford
Hi Jim,
Hope you are enjoying the break. I noticed your comment above regarding the proposed changes to the Scottish system and have to take issue with what you said.
Firstly, we spoke to the AIB (Scottish Insolvency Service) last week and they told us that the proposed changes will not be coming into effect as originally proposed in April 2015. I am sure your affiliates in Scotland can confirm this. They will be applied “later in the year” but as of now, AIB do not know when.
As I said when we met recently, we have an Insolvency Practitioner in Glasgow with over 30 years’ experience who has dealt with thousands of cases. When I spoke to him about the effect of the proposed changes in the system he believes that their impact will be far less that you seem to think.
As he sees it, the 2 main changes relate to payment orders and inheritances. As of today, approximately 20% of bankruptcies result in a payment order. In the case of inheritances, the figure is less than 5%. Therefore it can be seen that the vast majority of cases will not be affected by the changes. However, for anyone who might be impacted by the changes they will obviously need to factor them into their decision and look at the alternatives.
The existing benefits of Scottish bankruptcy will still hold true, e.g. no Court appearance, lower administration fees and a shorter COMI than in England/ Wales. Bankruptcy will still last 12 months, so to say that the Irish and Scottish systems are comparable is simply incorrect.
As I have always said, there is no one system that will suit everyone, either for personal or financial circumstances. I have never said that Scotland is the only show in town; there are a number of options available to anyone considering bankruptcy. For anyone considering which route to go, do your homework and speak to people dealing with the various options open to you. Doing nothing is not an option.
16then, well done and keep on keeping on! ;-)
Ciarán
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