The restrictions that bankruptcy imposes on you can have a crippling affect on your ability to trade, run your business and your livelihood, not to mention the threat of losing your home. That coupled with the devastating consequences to your credit rating which can last up to 6 years, you may be looking for a way to cancel the bankruptcy order made against you.

An annulment is the means by which insolvency legislation allows for a bankruptcy order to be cancelled, thus having the effect that it was never made and as such, would mean you would no longer be bankrupt.

Annulments can be sought by making an application to Court at an time after the bankruptcy order is made, including after discharge from bankruptcy, which usually occurs automatically on the 12 month anniversary of the making of the bankruptcy order.

Insolvency legislation prescribes the following instances where an annulment can be sought:

a. If at the time when the bankruptcy order was made, there was a valid reason why it ought not to have been made (for example, where the debt to the petitioning creditor had been paid in full prior to the date of the hearing of the petition, when the bankruptcy order was made);

b. That the debts and expenses of the bankruptcy have either been paid in full or secured to the satisfaction of the court (most commonly through the introduction of funds by a third party); or

c. That an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) has been approved.

It is always prudent to make the application as quickly as possible in order to keep the costs of your bankruptcy estate to a minimum and also to limit the effect that the bankruptcy will have on your livelihood.

Having read the above, if you consider yourself in a position to be able to annul your bankruptcy, please do not hesitate to contact us and we can make an appointment for you to attended our offices for an initial consultation. During the consultation we will help determine whether it is worth you making an annulment application and how we can assist you in doing so.

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