87. Restrictions on appointment as liquidator, receiver etc.

(1) A Person must not be appointed or act as a Receiver, Administrative Receiver or Liquidator of a Company under these Regulations, the Rules, or any other AIFC Regulations or AIFC Rules, unless the Person is registered as an insolvency practitioner under this Part.

(2) Without limiting subsection (1), unless a Person who is an Insolvency Practitioner is further registered as an official liquidator under this Part, the Person must not be appointed as:

• (a) a liquidator under section 57 (Choice of Liquidator by Court or meetings of creditors and contributories); or
• (b) a provisional liquidator under section 58 (Appointment of Provisional Liquidator).

(3) The registration of an Insolvency Practitioner as an Official Liquidator constitutes an acknowledgement by the Insolvency Practitioner that the Insolvency Practitioner will “in principle” accept any appointment made by the Court as a liquidator or provisional liquidator of a Company in accordance with any rules of procedure that may be made by the Court.

88. Qualification and registration of Insolvency Practitioners and Official Liquidators

(1) The Rules must prescribe criteria that a Person must meet to be registered as an insolvency practitioner or official liquidator. The Rules may include requirements relating to the qualifications, experience and fitness and propriety of applicants for registration.

(2) The Rules may provide for requirements mentioned in subsection (2) to be varied for applicants who are, at the time of application, regulated in a jurisdiction outside the AIFC.

(3) The Registrar of Companies may:

• (a) grant or refuse to grant an application for registration as an insolvency practitioner or official liquidator; and
• (b) impose any restrictions or conditions on granting registration.

(4) A Person registered as an insolvency practitioner or official liquidator must act within the scope of the Person’s registration and comply with any restrictions and conditions imposed on the registration.

(5) The Registrar of Companies may, by Written notice given to a Person registered as an insolvency practitioner or official liquidator on the Registrar’s own initiative or at the request of the Person’s:

• (a) impose restrictions or conditions on the Person’s registration; or
• (b) vary or withdraw any restrictions or conditions imposed on the Person’s registration; or
• (c) suspend, cancel or otherwise withdraw the Person’s registration.

(6) In making a decision under this section, the Registrar of Companies must comply with any Rules applying in relation to the making of the decision.

89. Register of insolvency practitioners and official liquidators

(1) The Registrar of Companies must keep and publish registers of current and past registrations of insolvency practitioners and official liquidators in accordance with any requirements prescribed by the Rules.

(2) The Registrar of Companies must make a reasonably current version of each register kept under subsection (1) freely available for viewing by the public during the normal business hours of the Registrar.

90. Obligation of disclosure to Registrar

(1) An Insolvency Practitioner (including an Official Receiver) appointed for a Company must disclose to the Registrar of Companies any matter that reasonably tends to show:

• (a) that the Company has or may have Contravened these Regulations (within the meaning given by section 169 of the AIFC Companies Regulations);
• (b) anything else prescribed by the Rules or any other Legislation Administered by the Registrar.

(2) Contravention of subsection (1) is punishable by a fine.

(3) Subsection (1) does not require the disclosure of a privileged communication

(4) Any provision in an agreement between a Company and an officer, employee or agent of the Company or an Insolvency Practitioner is void so far as it purports to hinder any Person from causing or assisting an Insolvency Practitioner to comply with subsection (1).

(5) A Person must not be subjected to detriment, loss or damage only because the Person does anything to cause or assist an Insolvency Practitioner to comply with subsection

(1).

(6) The Court may, on application of an aggrieved Person, make any order for relief if the Person has been subjected to any detriment, loss or damage mentioned in subsection (5).

(7) Without limiting any other provision of these Regulations, the Rules or any other Legislation Administered by the Registrar, an Insolvency Practitioner does not Contravene any duty to which the Insolvency Practitioner is subject only because the Insolvency Practitioner:

• (a) makes a disclosure under subsection (1); or
• (b) gives the Registrar of Companies any other information or opinion in relation to a matter to which the disclosure applies or any related matter, if the Insolvency Practitioner is acting in good faith and reasonably believes that the notification, information or opinion is relevant to any functions of the Registrar.

(8) In this section: privileged communication means a communication attracting a privilege arising from the provision of professional legal advice or any other advice to which the relationship of lawyer and client or other similar relationship applies, but does not include a communication to which a general duty of confidentiality only applies.

91. Supervision of Insolvency Practitioners

(1) This section applies if the Court is satisfied, on the application of the Registrar of Companies, that an Insolvency Practitioner:

1. (a) has Contravened these Regulations (within the meaning given by section 169 of the AIFC Companies Regulations); or
2. (b) has Failed, whether within or outside the AIFC, to Exercise any Functions adequately or properly;or
3. (c) is otherwise not a fit and proper Person to remain an Insolvency Practitioner or, if applicable, an Official Liquidator.

(2) The Court may make 1 or more of the following orders:

1. (a) an order that the Registrar of Companies may cancel, suspend for a stated period, or impose stated restrictions or conditions on, the Person’s registration as an insolvency practitioner or official liquidator (or, if applicable, both);
2. (b) an order imposing restrictions or conditions on the Person’s future conduct as an Insolvency Practitioner or Official Liquidator (or, if applicable, both);
3. (c) an order requiring the Person to do, or refrain from doing, anything;
4. (d) any other order the Court considers appropriate.

(3) This section does not affect the powers that any Person or the Court may have apart from this section.