The Companies Act 71 of 2008 has codified the qualifications that are required in order to be appointed as a business rescue practitioner. The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission have recently published a Notice in which it listed the Accredited Professional Bodies whose members are eligible to be appointed as business rescue practitioners.
The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission recently published a Notice to Customers (Notice 28 of 2022) which provides an updated list of Accredited Professional Bodies, at least one of which a prospective business rescue practitioner should be a member in order to accept an appointment as a business rescue practitioner.
The list of Professional Bodies includes:
- Institute of Accounting and Commerce (IAC)
- South African Institute of Professional Accountants (SAIPA)
- Chartered Institute of Business Accountants NPC (CIBA)
- South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA)
- The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (South Africa) NPC (ACCA)
- The Institute of Business Advisors NPC (IBASA)
- The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
- Turnaround Management Association (TMA)
- South African Restructuring and Insolvency Practitioners Association NPC (SARIPA)
- The Institute of Management Consultants and Master Coaches of South Africa NPC (IMCSA)
- Legal Practice Council
This list is important in that the Companies Act 71 of 2008 details the qualifications that a business rescue practitioner must have in order to be appointed as a practitioner, which includes but is not limited, to the following provision:
138 Qualifications of practitioners
(1) A person may be appointed as the business rescue practitioner of a company only of if the person –
- is a member in good standing of a legal, accounting or business management profession accredited by the Commission;
- ……………………
If an unqualified practitioner is appointed, then parties need to consider drastic intervention and may need to approach a Court in terms of Section 139 of the Companies Act 71 of 2008 to have the practitioner removed and replaced by a properly qualified professional.
Barnard is fully equipped to advise parties that are considering business rescue proceedings or require further guidance on the business rescue process whether it be as the distressed company or as a creditor.
Article by Pieter Walters