Invesco in attempt to gain reprieve

Press, 5 March 1988, Page 27

Invesco in attempt to gain reprieve

PA Auckland Invesco Group is making a bid to overturn the High Court's decision to wind up the company on a point of law’. Invesco chairman, Mr Bob Stubbs, claims that the Master of the High Court, who is not a judge, made an incorrect decision on Wednesday in not allowing Invesco a week’s reprieve to call a creditors' meeting and put forward a scheme of arrangement. Such a scheme allows a company to continue trading so that debts can be paid.

At Wednesday’s court

hearing the master said the Auckland-based investment company • had had plenty of time to put that particular plan into effect, and he was satisfied Invesco could not pay its debts.

Invesco's lawyer, Russell. McVeagh, McKenzie, Bartleet and Company, maintains that the court has the discretion to grant an adjournment and believes that the master exercised the discretion wrongly. Invesco Group’s legal counsel have consequently filed notice of appeal and are making an application for a stay of execution of the winding up order.

Court Masters differ from judges in having only specified areas of jurisdiction. They ordinarily handle company windups and receiverships.

Mr Stubbs said Invesco had been working for its creditors for three months. Invesco's assets were its subsidiaries. They also included those assets to be realised over the next couple of years, there would be enough funds to cover the company’s debts, he said. This of course would depend on the sharemarket’s performing "reasonably” over that time.

Invesco’s property de-

velopment arm, Stubbs Developments, Ltd, has just about concluded negotiations with a Government department to lease a $l6 million commercial office development in Henderson,? he said. iInvesco's listed subsidiaries Strategic Capital, Ltd, and its waterbed manufacturing operation, Classic Corporation, Ltd, have been placed in receivership.

Invesco’s creditors include Radiator Industries, Ltd, Hawkins Construction, Ltd, Jordan Sandman Smyth and Paine Belcher, Ltd. i I

The hearing jinto] Invesco Group obtaining a stay on an order to windup has been adjourned to Monday. | I