Lawyers with urgent court business filings will be dealt with immediately by the Companies Registration Office (CRO), its Registrar of Companies has confirmed.

Registrar Maureen O’Sullivan has clarified to the Law Society that exceptional matters will be pushed through quickly.

The CRO recently made arrangements with a law firm to accept delivery of a court order and other documents that were extremely time critical, she said.

Up-to date-filings

The registrar also confirmed to the Law Society that liquidation, receivership and examinership filings are being received onto the system and are up-to-date, as of 8 May.

Law Society President Michele O’Boyle had written to the registrar seeking a resolution to issues that legal practitioners had encountered with CRO services.

In a detailed response on 11 May, the registrar has clarified that, since lockdown, the CRO has increased the range of tasks that can be done by its staff working from home.

Physical copies

However, the nature of the work of the CRO is that most online forms need to be signed and physically sent in to its offices.

Limited numbers of staff are now attending both the Carlow and Dublin offices every day to ensure that all post is being opened and date-stamped.

Those documents must then be scanned onto the CRO database by staff in the office before those working from home can process them.

Sequence

The CRO has prioritised the incorporation of companies, registration of business names, change of name, and SAPs. Other submissions are being dealt with in sequence.

View the CRO letter here.

Liquidation, receivership and examinership filings are up to date as of 8 May, and are consequently visible on the ‘company search’ facility.