23/11/2009 - Belfast High Court rejects attempt to stave off regulatory investigation following collapse of Mutual Society

The High Court in Belfast (Weatherup J) has rejected an attempt by two accountants to judicially review a decision of the Executive Counsel of the Accountancy and Actuarial Discipline Board to pursue an investigation arising out of the collapse of the Presbyterian Mutual Society Limited.  The Society's collapse in 2008 affected many thousands of savers in Northern Ireland.   The Board is investigating whether the Society, of which the accountants were directors, failed to obtain the appropriate regulatory authorisation for the conduct of its business.

The Board is the independent investigative and disciplinary body for accountants and actuaries in the United Kingdom.  It deals with cases which raise or appear to raise important issues affecting the public interest.  It operates and administers an independent disciplinary scheme covering members of the principal accountants' and actuaries' professional bodies in the UK.

The accountants claimed that the Board's investigation violated their rights under the European Convention on Human Rights and that the Board's decision to investigate them was likely to produce material which may compromise their ability to resist other potential regulatory action and/or civil claims by members of the Society who have suffered loss as a result of the collapse.   The Court rejected these arguments.