The consequences of being struck off the Register of Companies are stark. The company ceases to have any legal existence, it is divested of all assets, and proceedings cannot be commenced or maintained against it.

Company controllers have no authority to deal with company assets and expose themselves to personal and civil liability should they continue to trade. However, the liability of its members, directors, and other officers continues, and may be enforced as if the company had not been dissolved.

Restoration

These difficulties can be remedied by restoring the company to the register. Currently, the majority of court-ordered restoration applications are brought by creditors seeking to enforce a right or pursue a claim against the company. However, a significant percentage are still brought by directors, writes barrister Sally O’Neill in the Gazette.

Many of these cases arise when directors who were ignorant of the strike-off find themselves unable to complete an intended transaction on behalf of the company.

A complex process

A member or officer can make an application for registration within 12 months of the company’s dissolution to the registrar. However, for a restoration order to take effect, a member or officer seeking restoration must take certain steps. In the Jan-Feb 2017 Gazette, Sally O’Neill explains these steps – and the process for creditors or other parties seeking restoration.

• Read the full article in the Jan/Feb 2017 Gazette

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