The High Court appointed Myles Kirby as liquidator of McArthur Group Limited in Ireland, allowing secondary insolvency proceedings to continue alongside the company’s UK administration. Mr Justice Charleton refused a stay and directed that the process be handled speedily, with full cooperation between Mr Kirby and the UK administrators.
The judgment, delivered on 8 July 2014, arose from a petition by Rathville Limited, which the court said was owed €58,000. The case followed the appointment of Mr Kirby as provisional liquidator on 30 May, on an application by Rathville to preserve the company’s assets in Ireland.
The judge said the company had operated an Irish establishment for at least 10 years. Its Irish branch had shut its activity on 24 February, while the UK company was in administration and its business was being considered for sale. The court heard that Irish assets included land in Dublin, for which an offer of about €1.5 million had been received, against a stated peak value of €2.5 million. Some stock in Ireland had already been sold as part of the UK proceedings.
Mr Kirby’s work uncovered potential Irish public debts that had not been known in the UK proceedings. The judgment referred to a Revenue Commissioners claim for unpaid VAT and a Dublin City Council rates claim. It noted uncertainty about how Irish public and fiduciary debts would rank in the UK process, and said local proceedings could help establish priorities and deal with local claims and assets.
The UK administrator argued that the Irish establishment had ceased when the branch shut, removing the basis for secondary proceedings. The judge rejected that argument, finding that the long-running establishment, remaining assets and unresolved Irish insolvency matters supported the court’s jurisdiction. He stressed that opening secondary proceedings was discretionary under the applicable EU insolvency rules.
The court appointed Mr Kirby as liquidator rather than replacing him with PWC Ireland. It also refused a stay, finding that continuing the Irish process was of interest to UK creditors. The court directed a statement of affairs and that the matter be listed before the Examiner in six weeks. The proceedings were limited to the company’s assets in Ireland.