Property Enforcement Dispute

H&J was approached by the Administrators of a company which was in the business of providing bridging loan finance for property acquisitions.  The company had entered into administration in 2006 following the misappropriation by the managing director of sums in excess of £59m.  The Administrators had obtained a judgment against the director for payment of the sums misappropriation and had enforced the judgment against various assets of the director.  

The Administrators had, however, encountered significant difficulties in trying to enforce the judgment against a property in Spain owned by the director, due in part to the nuances of the Spanish legal system and in the face of numerous legal challenges brought by the director to hinder the Administrators’ efforts.  Those challenges, which included (spurious) allegations of criminal misconduct on the part of the Administrators and their solicitors, were causing extensive delays and wasted costs, and ultimately threatened to derail the enforcement process.

The property in question is a beachfront, penthouse apartment in Marbella valued at €4m and was therefore a significant asset from which substantial recoveries could (potentially) be made for the benefit of creditors.  Faced with extensive delays to the enforcement process and ever-increasing costs, the Administrators reached out to H&J and an assignment was agreed in 2022 which de-risked the Administrators and allowed them to leave office (having been in office for more than 16 years), with the company’s entitlement to a share of proceeds being assigned to its secured creditor.  

H&J is now continuing with enforcement action against the Spanish property, and we continue to deal with and dispose of the various challenges raised by the director.  Combining the expertise and experience of our in-house legal team and local solicitors specialising in this field, we have made substantial progress with the enforcement and we anticipate realising the asset in 2025.