IN THE COURTS: The High Court Examiner's Office dealt with 80 new cases last year, double the number it handled in 2007, writes Colm Keena

THE HIGH Court Examiner’s Office is on the second floor of Phoenix House, looking out on the old Jameson Distillery building in Smithfield, a few minutes walk from the Four Courts in Dublin.

Despite his title, the examiner, James Finn, deals with court liquidations rather than examinerships. In 2007 his office dealt with approximately 40 new cases, and last year it dealt with approximately 80 new cases.

Court liquidations are much less frequent than voluntary liquidations, but there is no reason to believe the figures are not indicative of a trend.

As well as other matters the office assists the courts in the processing of liquidations they have approved, overseeing certain procedural matters and authorising certain payments by liquidator.

Next Monday the office will hear five new cases referred to it by the courts. Yesterday it heard two.

The companies involved were Guildstone Construction Ltd, and RS Finishing Systems Ltd. Guildstone was a construction company based in Navan, Co Meath.

It was set up in 1997 and concentrated on residential and commercial developments in the midlands and greater Dublin area. The downturn in the Navan property market hit it badly, as did the general downturn in the construction sector.

The company owes approximately €2.9million to its bankers, €28,000 to the Collector General, €37,000 to former employees and €1.1 million to trade creditors. The liquidator, Ken Fennell of Kavanagh Fennell, is currently trying to sell the assets of the company, which include a block of apartments in Navan, and lands in the Meath area.

RS Finishing Systems, with an address at the Citywest Business Campus, Dublin 24, was incorporated 38 years ago, in March 1970. The business erected roofs on to large commercial and industrial developments, and worked for clients such as Sisk, McNamara and Rohcon. Its 2006 turnover was €8.15 million, but it nevertheless suffered a minor loss.

Turnover dropped by more than €500,000 in 2007 and the company suffered its first ever substantial loss. During 2008 its suppliers began to shut down lines of credit because of concerns caused by the general downturn in the construction sector and, unable any longer to finance its working capital, the company decided it had to go into liquidation.

Creditors are owed approximately €2.5 million, of which approximately €1.7 million is due to unsecured creditors. Again the liquidator is Fennell and he has been granted permission by the High Court to finish a number of the company’s ongoing projects, so as to maximise the sum that can be realised for creditors.

Liquidators are appointed to wind up companies and distribute whatever is available to creditors and shareholders.

Examiners, on the other hand, are appointed to companies in the hope that some or all of their business can be rescued, if they are given the protection of the courts for a short period.

Yesterday Mr Justice Peter Kelly of the Commercial Court was told how examiner Kevin Hughes of Hughes Blake was faring in his attempts to save the business of Tuskar Asset Management plc and its subsidiaries, a group of companies involved in property development and investment.

Hughes was appointed examiner to the group, with an address at Tuskar House, John’s Gate Street, Wexford, last October, at the request of one director and two shareholders. The move was opposed, unsuccessfully, by the board and the majority of shareholders.

Yesterday, Mr Justice Kelly was told the examiner was not in a position to put together a scheme of arrangement for the majority of the companies in the group.

However, negotiations that had ended just minutes before the court went into its afternoon session had agreed a potential scheme of arrangement for one of the subsidiaries, Tuskar Commercial Investment Properties, which owns the Bank of Ireland building in Wexford.

The scheme discussed had been approved by one class of creditors, although opposed by others. It would involved some of the investors in the group making an investment of €751,000. The court was asked to extend the period of the examinership to tomorrow so a report on the proposed scheme could be handed to the court. The court heard that the initial investment figure of €2 million could be reduced to €751,000 because Ulster Bank, a creditor, had reduced its terms.

Mr Justice Kelly noted that the other Tuskar subsidiaries were not being saved. The sole surviving company owed €13 million to Ulster Bank, €2.2 million in a reverse premium due to the Bank of Ireland, and more than €1 million to the Revenue.

(Reverse premiums are payments made by developers or landlords to induce a tenant to enter into a lease agreement.)

Mr Justice Kelly extended the protection of the court to tomorrow when a report on the proposed scheme of arrangement will be presented.