This article is from page 2 of the 2014-01-14 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 2 JPG
A CLARE man who owes almost € 1.8 million is the largest debtor to come before the Personal Insolvency Court so far, the Insolvency Service of Ireland (ISI) has confirmed.
The first sitting at Ennis District Court of the Personal Insolvency Court for the South Western Circuit took place on Thursday.
The case before Judge Patrick Meaghan concerned a Clare man with total qualifying liabilities of € 1.77 million. The man was seeking a protection certificate from the court to allow time to enter into negotiations with his creditors.
Figures shown to the court revealed the man had total assets of € 394,900, a monthly income of € 5,687 and monthly expenses of € 5,994.
The man is a married father of one. The court heard he is an engineer currently working in Finland. His debts concern money owed to financial institutions for commercial premises in Limerick and Dublin along with two buy-to-let properties. In total, the man has 14 creditors.
The man was not present in court but was represented by Personal Insolvency Practitioner (PIP) John Hogan. The ISI were also represented in court.
Judge Patrick Meaghan said the debtor was obviously insolvent. He said he was satisfied to grant the protection certificate. He wished the man all the best. The man now has 70 days to strike a deal with creditors. Judge Patrick Meaghan said he was pleased to see members of the press attending the court sitting. He said the Personal Insolvency Court is a new jurisdiction in which there is a lot of public interest. He said that press coverage had so far been “very fair and balanced”.
He said behind every case are people with difficulties. He asked the media to refrain from identifying the debtor and his creditors. Judge Meaghan added, “It is a matter that is very topical, but hopefully with sensitivity things can be progressed.”
According to it’s website, “The mission of the ISI is to help restore people who are insolvent to solvency in a fair, transparent and equitable way.”
The ISI is an independent statutory body. It was established by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Alan Shatter, TD on March 1, 2013.
Speaking after the hearing, PIP John Hogan said he thought the ISI was “doing a fantastic job”.
“The only problem with the legislation is that it should have happened four years ago. It might have saved a few marriages,” he added.
Mr Hogan said half of the people who have engaged his services as a PIP (8 or 9) come from Clare.
Mr Hogan, an Ennis-based accountant, is one of two PIPs registered in Clare. The other is another Ennis based accountant, John Carmody.