ABSTRACT
As the Cork Committee recognised trustees in bankruptcy occupy a fiduciary position vis-à-vis the estate. This obligation of stewardship is a common facet of English law where one person has been selected to oversee the assets of another. The stewardship of the trustee survives discharge. This has become a more noticeable phenomenon since the Enterprise Act 2002, which was designed to reduce substantially the period before a bankrupt becomes eligible for discharge, came into force in April 2004. A lay person would naturally assume that a trustee in bankruptcy, like many a professional person, should be subject to a duty to take reasonable care whilst carrying out his functions. Moving away from responsibilities imposed on trustees in bankruptcy it is important to consider the range of powers with which they are invested. Insolvency practitioners engaged in promoting IVA activity are subject to a different range of responsibilities.
