Director Disqualification:
Section 8A Variation
of a Disqualification Undertaking
If you have signed a disqualification undertaking sent to you by the Insolvency Service, then you may be able to petition for some relief under this section of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986.
There are two important aspects to consider: (1) only the director can make this application. The Secretary of State can’t seek any variation of the undertaking. (2) the Court may only vary an undertaking in your favour or terminate it altogether.
The second point above is key here because by making the application, the Court cannot worsen the disqualification period you already face. For example, if you have 10 years left on your undertaking that was originally 15 years, the Court may reduce it down to by 5 years and therefore you only have 5 years remaining. In order for the undertaking to be terminated altogether, the reduction by the Court would need to go beyond the length of your disqualification remaining. For example, if you have 3 years left on a 10-year disqualification, and the Court reduces it by 5 years, then your disqualification will in effect cease to be in force.
The difficulty in bringing these applications is, however, in justifying special circumstances that warrant a reduction in your disqualification period. This could be a variety of matters, such as new factual circumstances, failures by the parties at the time, or any other relevant mitigation. All manner of arguments have been deployed in the case law.
This is a complex application that requires very convincing and well written thought-out evidence to be presented before the Court. We can assist you with this work and advise you on the prospects of obtaining a reduction in your existing disqualification period.
Section 8A of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986:
