BANKRUPTCY LAW.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 September 1931, Page 8

BANKRUPTCY LAW.

The unsatisfactory nature of the bankruptcy laws has been a frequent cause of complaint by the commercial community. Naturally it is when times are hard that the inequity of loosely-drawn legislation is most keenly felt and when the honest trader suffers most from the actions of those less scrupulous in business matters. Recently, however, there has been a decided tightening up in regard to the administration of the existing law, and in more than one ease imprisonment has been inflicted by the courts for flagrant breaches of the Statute. The effect of this punishment is bound to be deterrent, while stricter inquiry into the circumstances surrounding every bankruptcy is likely to lead to°a considerable reduction in the number of those who seek this method of relief from liabilities they are unable to meet. The bankruptcy law is intended to assist those who are insolvent through misfortune or adversity, and to ensure, so far as is possible, that whatever assets they may possess are distributed with fairness among their creditors. Judging by some of the cases that have come before the courts, some bankrupts have been under the impression that the law exists to provide an easy way of evading liability, and that it may be invoked with impunity when all means of obtaining further credit have been exhausted. The trouble is that to bring the criminally careless to trial often necessitates action by the creditors, and because they are loath to incur further expense in addition to losses already sustained a guilty person escapes the consequences of improper conduct. To prevent this, and in other directions also, there is room for improvement in the law. Nevertheless, it seems quite evident that more systematic administration of the existing law throughout the Dominion would bring about a diminution in the class of bankruptcy that is so unsatisfactory to all concerned. It has the added merit of being practicable forthwith, and with no need to await the decision of Parliament.