Authorisation for assignment under insolvency rules: no contravention found where consent predated the cut-off and filing was already made.

Regulation 7A of the Insolvency Professional Regulations bars acceptance or undertaking of a liquidation assignment after 31 December 2019 without a valid authorisation for assignment, and the authorisation regime operates with the eligibility conditions in the model bye-laws, including the age restriction for obtaining such authorisation. On the facts, the insolvency professional had given written consent for appointment as liquidator before the cut-off date and the consent had already been filed before the requirement became operative; the authority also accepted that a person above seventy years was ineligible to apply for authorisation. No contravention was made out and no direction was warranted.

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Issues: Whether the insolvency professional had contravened the regulatory requirements by accepting or undertaking the liquidation assignment without a valid authorisation for assignment after 31 December 2019.

Analysis: Regulation 7A of the Insolvency Professional Regulations prohibits acceptance or undertaking of an assignment after 31 December 2019 unless the insolvency professional holds a valid authorisation for assignment. The disciplinary authority also noted that the authorisation regime is linked with the eligibility conditions under the model bye-laws, including the age restriction for obtaining such authorisation. On the facts, the professional had given written consent for appointment as liquidator before the cut-off date and that consent had been filed with the tribunal before the new requirement became operative. In addition, the authority accepted that a person above seventy years was ineligible to apply for authorisation for assignment, which explained the absence of such authorisation in the present case. In that backdrop, no lapse was found in the professional's conduct.

Conclusion: No contravention was made out and no direction was warranted against the insolvency professional.

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