A HIGH Court judge has questioned the “inordinate” number of applications to the bankruptcy court brought by finance company Friends First. Out of a list of 75 cases before the High Court’s bankruptcy session yesterday, 28 cases were taken by the lender.
Friends First was granted 13 applications for bankruptcy summonses yesterday and was also listed for 14 petitions.
Mr Justice Brian McGovern asked how the lender could have so many cases. “There seems to be an inordinate number of applications for Friends First,” he said. “I wonder if there is a better way to deal with these matters?”
He asked if any of the cases related to mortgages and was told they did not. Una Cassidy, for the lender, said there were not normally so many cases on the bankruptcy list for Friends First, but a number of issues had arisen over the vacation.
The lender made every effort to contact borrowers and deal with their cases before coming to court.
“In advance of issuing proceedings, every opportunity is afforded to them to engage,” she said.
In one of the Friends First cases yesterday, a man who had been served with bankruptcy proceedings after taking out a car loan told the court his solicitor had attempted to contact the lender, but had no response.
“I’ve tried to deal with it, but they have never written back to me,” he said.
Mr Justice McGovern said it was not satisfactory that the company’s solicitor had not communicated with the man. “I find it hard to understand . . . this is another Friends First application out of so many,” he said. He adjourned the case for four weeks.
In another case, an accountant who owed €109,000 to the Revenue Commissioners was given more time to pay. The court heard he had already paid off much of the debt and now owed €10,000, but might be unable to pay taxes due at the end of October. Reading documents handed into the court, the judge remarked the man had been on holiday.
“If you are adjudicated a bankrupt you won’t be going on holiday in future,” he said. He adjourned the case for eight weeks to give the man a chance to pay the balance.
