The Insolvency (Northern Ireland) Order 1989

Insolvency rules N.I.

359.—(1) The Lord Chancellor may, with the concurrence of the Department and after consultation with the committee appointed under Article 360, make rules for the purpose of giving effect to this Order [F1 or the EC Regulation].

[F2 (1A) Rules that affect court procedure may be made under paragraph (1) only with the concurrence of the Lord Chief Justice.

(1B) The Lord Chief Justice may nominate any of the following to exercise his functions under paragraph (1A)—

(a) the holder of one of the offices listed in Schedule 1 to the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002;

(b) a Lord Justice of Appeal (as defined in section 88 of that Act).]

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (1), or to any provision of this Order by virtue of which rules under this Article may be made with respect to any matter, rules under this Article may contain—

(a) any such provision as is specified in Schedule 5 or corresponds to provision contained immediately before the coming into operation of this Order in rules made, or having effect as if made under Article 613(1) and (2) of the Companies Order (old winding‐up rules), and

(b )F3 any such provision as is specified in Schedule 6 or corresponds to provision contained immediately before the coming into operation of this Order in rules made under Article 33(1) and (2) of the Bankruptcy Amendment (Northern Ireland) Order 1980F4 (old bankruptcy rules), and

(c) provision for enabling the Master (Bankruptcy) to exercise such of the jurisdiction conferred for the purposes of this Order on the High Court as may be prescribed and for enabling the review of any such jurisdiction, and

(d) such incidental, supplemental and transitional provision as may appear to the Lord Chancellor or, as the case may be, the Department necessary or expedient.

[F1 (2A )F3  For the purposes of paragraph (2), a reference in Schedule 5 or Schedule 6 to doing anything under or for the purposes of a provision of this Order includes a reference to doing anything under or for the purposes of the EC Regulation (in so far as the provision of this Order relates to a matter to which the EC Regulation applies).

(2B) Rules under this Article for the purpose of giving effect to the EC Regulation may not create an offence of a kind referred to in paragraph 1(1)(d) of Schedule 2 to the European Communities Act 1972.]

(3) In Schedule 5 “liquidator” includes a provisional liquidator; and references in this Article to this Order are to be read as including [F5 the Companies Acts] so far as relating to, and to matters connected with or arising out of, the insolvency or winding up of companies.

(4) Rules under this Article shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament in like manner as a statutory instrument and section 5 of the Statutory Instruments Act 1946F6 shall apply accordingly.

(5) Regulations made by the Department under a power conferred by rules under this Article shall be subject to affirmative resolution.

(6) Nothing in this Article prejudices any power to make rules of court.

F1 SR 2002/223

F2 Art. 359(1A)(1B) inserted (3.4.2006) by Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4), ss. 15(2), 148(1), Sch. 5 para. 81; S.I. 2006/1014, art. 2(a), Sch. 1

F3 mod. by SR 2004/307

F4 1980 NI 4

F5 Words in art. 359(3) substituted (1.10.2007) by Companies Act 2006 (Commencement No. 3, Consequential Amendments, Transitional Provisions and Savings) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/2194), arts. 1(3)(a), 10(1), Sch. 4 para. 62 (with art. 12)

F6 1946 c. 36

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 Art. 359 applied in part (1.10.2007) by Companies Act 2006 (c. 46), ss. 997, 1300(2); S.I. 2007/2194, art. 2(1)(j) (with art. 12)