Hosking (Liquidator); In the Matter of Business Aptitude Pty Ltd (In Liq)

The court was asked to consider an application by the liquidator of Business Aptitude Pty Ltd, Philip Raymond Hosking, to be discharged from acting as receiver and manager of the Crosby Family Trust. The Trust had assets that were held in a trust account, which was also used by the Company. The liquidator sought to be discharged from his role as receiver and manager of the Trust and for leave to dispense with the requirement to pass his final accounts for acting as receiver and manager of the Trust. The court also considered the application to authorise the liquidator to retain possession of all documents of the Trust in his capacity as liquidator of the Company. The costs of the Interlocutory Process filed by the plaintiff on 19 September 2017 were also considered.

The court considered the application and noted that the liquidator had performed his duties diligently and in good faith. The court was satisfied that the liquidator had no further role to play as receiver and manager of the Trust and that it was appropriate to discharge him from that role. The court also considered the application to dispense with the requirement to pass the final accounts for acting as receiver and manager of the Trust and noted that there were no objections to the application. The court was satisfied that it was appropriate to grant leave to dispense with the requirement to pass the final accounts. The court considered the application to authorise the liquidator to retain possession of all documents of the Trust and noted that the liquidator had a legitimate interest in retaining the documents. The court was satisfied that it was appropriate to authorise the liquidator to retain possession of the documents. Finally, the court considered the application for the costs of the Interlocutory Process to be paid out of the assets of the Trust or, if there were insufficient assets in the Trust, out of the assets of the Company. The court was satisfied that it was appropriate to order that the costs be paid out of the assets of the Trust or, if there were insufficient assets in the Trust, out of the assets of the Company.

The court ordered that the liquidator be discharged and released from acting as receiver and manager of the Trust. The court granted leave to the liquidator to dispense with the requirement to pass his final accounts for acting as receiver and manager of the Trust. The court authorised the liquidator to retain possession of all documents of the Trust in his capacity as liquidator of the Company. The court ordered that the costs of the Interlocutory Process be paid out of the assets of the Trust or, if there were insufficient assets in the Trust, out of the assets of the Company. The court's orders were made under Rule 39.32 of the Federal Court Rules 2011.