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In December 2010, Peter Dinoris, whilst he was working at a previous firm, was found to have breached section 180(1) of the Corporations Act by failing to discharge his duties as the liquidator of Asden Developments with the degree of care and diligence of a reasonably competent liquidator.
The Court found Mr Dinoris did not personally contact the director of the company by telephone after becoming aware that the director withdrew $236,500 from the company’s bank account one day prior to his appointment. The Court also concluded that there was no loss or damage incurred as a result of the breach.
Mr Dinoris, now of Artemis Insolvency, was able to provide ASIC with information regarding changes in his practices and procedures to explain why his registration should continue.
As such, Mr Dinoris will be required to engage a suitably qualified independent quality reviewer to undertake a review of four external administrations selected by ASIC, as part of the court enforceable undertaking.
The reviewer must assess Mr Dinoris’ compliance with his duties regarding investigations and contact with directors and produce a report of his/her findings to ASIC.
Liquidators in focus
ASIC Commissioner John Price said the outcomes achieved under the court enforceable undertaking show ASIC’s commitment to addressing instances of non-compliance and working co-operatively with registered liquidators to ensure high standards across the profession are maintained.
Mr Price’s comments come after the Federal Court commenced public examinations on entities connected to pre-insolvency adviser Philip Whiteman earlier this week, in a move welcomed as shining the light on illegal operators.
As part of a wider crackdown on illegal phoenix activity, draft legislation released earlier this month will also target all parties involved in phoenix activity, including pre-insolvency advisers who procures, incites, induces or encourages a company to make creditor‑defeating transfers of company assets.
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Jotham Lian
AUTHOR
Jotham Lian is the editor of Accountants Daily, the leading source of breaking news, analysis and insight for Australian accounting professionals.
Before joining the team in 2017, Jotham wrote for a range of national mastheads including the Sydney Morning Herald, and Channel NewsAsia.
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