Insolvency Act 1986

172 Removal, etc. (winding up by the court).E+W+S

(1)This section applies with respect to the removal from office and vacationm of office of the liquidator of a company which is being wound up by the court, or of a provisional liquidator.

(2)Subject as follows, the liquidator may be removed from office only by an order of the court or by a [F1decision of the company's creditors made by a qualifying decision procedure instigated] specially for that purpose in accordance with the rules; and a provisional liquidator may be removed from office only by an order of the court.

(3)Where—

(a)the official receiver is liquidator otherwise than in succession under section 136(3) to a person who held office as a result of a nomination by F2... the company’s creditors or contributories, or

(b)the liquidator was appointed by the court otherwise than under section 139(4)(a) or 140(1), or was appointed by the Secretary of State,

[F3a qualifying decision procedure such as is mentioned in subsection (2) shall be instigated only if the liquidator thinks fit, the court so directs, or it] is requested, in accordance with the rules, by not less than one-quarter, in value, of the creditors.

(4)If appointed by the Secretary of State, the liquidator may be removed from office by a direction of the Secretary of State.

(5)A liquidator or provisional liquidator, not being the official receiver, shall vacate office if he ceases to be a person who is qualified to act as an insolvency practitioner in relation to the company.

(6)A liquidator may, in the prescribed circumstances, resign his office by giving notice of his resignation to the court.

(7)Where an order is made under section 204 (early dissolution in Scotland) for the dissolution of the company, the liquidator shall vacate office when the dissolution of the company takes effect in accordance with that section.

[F4(8)Where the liquidator has produced an account of the winding up under section 146 (final account), the liquidator vacates office as soon as the liquidator has complied with section 146(4) (requirement to send account etc. to registrar and to court).]

[F5(9)Subsection (10) applies where, immediately before a liquidator gives notice to the court and the registrar under subsection (8) (or, where the liquidator gives notice to the court and the registrar on different days, immediately before the liquidator gives the first of those notices), there are EU insolvency proceedings open in respect of the company in one or more other member States.

(10)The liquidator must send to the court and the registrar, with the notice, a statement—

(a)identifying those proceedings,

(b)identifying the member State liquidator appointed in each of those proceedings, and

(c)indicating, in relation to each of those member State liquidators, whether that member State liquidator consents to the company being dissolved.]