Our Corporate Recovery and Insolvency Solicitors at Lee & Priestley has a long established reputation of providing specialist legal advice to insolvency practitioners and other professionals as well as individuals with personal or business financial problems.

Our very experienced team handles a full range of corporate and personal insolvency issues with dedication, tenacity and enthusiasm, attributes that are always required in this demanding area of work.

Chambers 2009: This growing business recovery and insolvency practice has an increasingly strong reputation to match. Drawing on the firm’s banking and corporate departments as required, the lawyers act primarily for IPs. Areas of proficiency include turnaround, corporate rescue, corporate and personal insolvency, asset realisation and directors’ disqualification. Clients rely on the team’s “highly responsive and efficient service,” which was recently employed by a hotel group on a £30 million restructuring and disposal programme. With “a no-nonsense, commercial approach,” Nigel Whitfield leads the department and “does a tremendous job on personal insolvency,” according to sources. He is particularly noted for his skill in complex bankruptcies and stands out as “one of the best personal insolvency lawyers in the north.”

Chambers 2008: The bulk of this team’s work derives from instructions from mid-tier IPs, who value the group’s "no-nonsense, practical advice." Sources also singled out the lawyers’ strong problem-solving skills: "If they don’t know the answer to our questions they research the matter rather than provide us with unsubstantiated answers." To this end, the department is able to call upon the guidance of the firm’s banking and corporate experts. The group is led by experienced lawyers who can advise on both corporate and personal insolvency matters, but recently it has been particularly busy dealing with property-related bankruptcies and individual voluntary arrangements. A number of IPs instructed the practice to assist in realising the value in their bankrupts’ matrimonial homes before the cut-off date provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002. In the past year the group handled the administration of Newade Stainless Products on behalf of Begbies Traynor, and acted for KPMG on a £13 million client refinancing. Lawyers also assist corporate clients facing financial difficulties or insolvency-related issues, recently acting for Dabs.com on the receivership of its subsidiary Amicus Outsourcing. The group also advised a creditor of the insolvent London & Edinburgh Group on litigation against administrators.

Chambers 2007: the department has grown in prominence in the Yorkshire market and has "had a very good year".
The department acts for many of the region's leading insolvency practitioners and for individuals with financial difficulties who require advice and assistance. We advise on all aspects of insolvency and related issues including:

Turnaround and Corporate Rescue

• Administrations and Company Voluntary Arrangements

Corporate Insolvency

• Receiverships and Liquidations
• Creditors Meetings

Partnership Insolvency

• Partnership Voluntary Arrangements
• Dissolution

Personal Insolvency

• Bankruptcy
• Individual Voluntary Arrangements

Insolvency Investigation and Asset Realisations

• Business Sales
• Transactions at undervalue
• Preferences
• Wrongful trading
• Misfeasance
• The family home

Directors Disqualification Proceedings

• Advising and defending directors