Caroline Roberts-Waterworth secures rare stay of bankruptcy orders following successful application
Caroline Roberts-Waterworth has successfully secured stays of enforcement of bankruptcy orders in an unusual insolvency case, following an application which had previously been refused on the papers.
Instructed under the Direct Access scheme, Caroline represented a husband and wife, both in their 80s, who had been adjudged bankrupt earlier this year on the basis that there was insufficient equity in their property to secure an outstanding debt. The couple were also defendants in separate litigation concerning a family company, the outcome of which will have a direct bearing on their ability to meet the debt in question.
Caroline was instructed to apply for stays of enforcement of the bankruptcy orders pending the determination of the clients’ appeals against the original bankruptcy decisions, on the grounds that enforcement would cause irreparable harm.
The application presented a significant legal hurdle. Stays of execution pending appeal are granted only in exceptional circumstances, with stays of bankruptcy orders being particularly rare. The original application had been refused on the papers when the clients were representing themselves as litigants in person.
Following Caroline’s oral submissions, HHJ Matthews, sitting as a High Court Judge, was persuaded that the circumstances justified the exceptional relief sought.
The Court accepted that enforcement of the bankruptcy orders could prevent the couple from continuing with the separate family company litigation. Crucially, the outcome of that litigation could directly affect their ability to secure the very debt upon which the bankruptcy orders were based. This was material to the assessment of irreparable harm and the balance of injustice.
In an ex tempore judgment, HHJ Matthews considered the relevant authorities and identified the circumstances in which an application for a stay may be regarded as falling within the category of cases that are "out of the ordinary". The Judge accepted that Caroline had established the necessary grounds through her oral representations and granted the stays.
The decision highlights the importance of identifying the wider consequences of enforcement when seeking exceptional relief pending appeal, and the value of focused oral advocacy in complex insolvency proceedings.
