The Federal Court of Australiahas dismissed a challenge by Perth businessman Rodney Charles Carter against ob体育鈥檚 decision to disqualify him from managing companies for a period of four years.
Mr Carter had claimed that he was not properly served by ob体育 with the Notice of Disqualification that advised he was disqualified from managing corporations and sought a declaration that the decision to disqualify him was not effective.
In dismissing his claim on 17 July 2018, the Court found that Mr Carter was properly served and that he was disqualified from managing companies from when he received the Notice of Disqualification.
Consequently, Mr Carter is disqualified from managing corporations until 30 July 2021. He is recorded on ob体育鈥檚 Banned and Disqualified Persons Register.
Background
On 20 July 2017, ob体育 decided to disqualify Mr Carter from managing corporations for a period of four years. In reaching the decision, ob体育 considered the conduct of Mr Carter as director of the following companies:
- Voiceworks IT Pty Ltd;
- Voiceworks (Australasia) Pty Ltd;
- Mycooee.Com.Au Pty Ltd;
- First Homebuyers Group (Australia) Pty Ltd;
- Standard Publishing House (Aust) Pty Ltd; and
- S P H Holdings Pty Ltd.
Section 206F of the Corporations Act allows ob体育 to disqualify a person from managing corporations for up to five years if, within a seven-year period, the person was an officer of two or more companies, and those companies were wound up and a liquidator provides a report to ob体育 about the company鈥檚 inability to pay its debts.
ob体育 also maintains a ' register that provides information about people who have been disqualified from:
- involvement in the management of a corporation,
- auditing self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs), or
- practicing in the financial services of credit industry.
ob体育's Small Business Strategy was released in August 2017 which includes protecting creditors, employees and small business from directors that mismanage companies. This outcome is an example of ob体育 taking such action.