What is bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy is a process where the ownership of an insolvent person’s property transfers to the Official Assignee in Bankruptcy to be sold by him for the benefit of those to whom the individual owes debts.

The maximum period for the duration of bankruptcy has been reduced from twelve to one year. Your debts, (secured or unsecured) must exceed assets by at least €20,000. Reasonable efforts must have been made to enter into an insolvency arrangement without success and a PIP must certify if this is the position.

You may be requested to contribute your surplus income (being the surplus amount after you pay your mortgage/rent and reasonable living expenses) to your creditors for a period of up to three years, this is called an Income Payment Order.

Eligibility Criteria:

-For individual debts of upwards of €20,000.00.

-Potential discharge after 1 year.

-All assets vest in the Official Assignee.

-Often the Official Assignee adopts a pragmatic approach and will sell the debtor’s 50% share in the family home to spouse.

-An undischarged bankrupt is prohibited from acting as a director of a company;

-Transactions going back 3 years before application may be voided.

Disadvantages

It is not suitable for all debtors, and it has a number of downsides that must be considered. The main downside is whether the family home can be kept as part of the process. Another downside is whether you will have to pay an income contribution for up to three years to the official assignee from any surplus income.

D V Mannion & Co provides a bankruptcy service to distressed debtors. We can assist you in all insolvency related matters and provide access to an in-house Personal Insolvency Practitioner, with a view to availing of alternatives to bankruptcy or availing of bankruptcy if needed.

Contact us

If you want to discuss this further please call us at 091 586020 or at dvm@dvmannion.ie or visit our offices in Galway.

We have attached the following bankruptcy scenarios guide