Brady Solicitors’ property litigation expert, Michael Young, helped a client recover mounting unpaid service charges from a persistent non-payer, even though the leaseholder was bankrupt.
A managing agent client understandably assumed they’d come to the end of the road in recovering £10K of outstanding service charge arrears when the leaseholder declared bankruptcy. The debt was affecting maintenance of the block and therefore impacting on the other leaseholders. After careful consideration of the facts, Michael applied to the courts to request a leave of bankruptcy, which would allow us to start possession proceedings against the leaseholder.
Using his litigation skills, lease expertise and property management experience, Michael put forward a compelling argument that saw the court grant the leave of bankruptcy, meaning the case could proceed outside of the usual bankruptcy rules. We obtained a judgment for the full amount plus costs and regained possession of the property. And this was all achieved without cost to the client.
Bankruptcy doesn’t always mean the end
When pursuing persistent debtors, the last thing you want to hear is the word ‘bankruptcy’. But it doesn’t necessarily mean that you cannot recover the debt. Before giving up, talk to Brady Solicitors – we may still be able to help. Contact us here for a friendly chat.
Brady Solicitors – a full service offering for property managers
Our full service offering for property managers means we were able to work with the client from receiving the initial instruction to recover service charge arrears, seeing the case through tricky litigation and finally offering our conveyancing expertise for the sale of the property for the freeholder. Handling all this in-house has saved our client and the freeholder valuable time and money.