The High Court of New Zealand can, upon the petition of a creditor of any company, appoint a liquidator to a company. This is usually done at the expiry of an unremedied statutory demand. The judge hearing the case has discretion over who is appointed as liquidator however in most cases the liquidator nominated by the creditor is appointed.
A court appointed liquidator is usually installed where the company has not taken steps to appoint its own liquidator. There is a set process that a creditor must follow to successfully petition the Court to appoint a liquidator.
In other cases, an interim liquidator may be appointed by the Court to protect and preserve the assets of a company. This appointment on an interim basis is typically done while there are disputes between shareholders or between creditors and the company and one or more party believes the assets of the company are at risk.
If you are a creditor that wishes to issue a statutory demand against a debtor or appoint a liquidator to a debtor company, please contact us to discuss how we can assist you with this process.
