ABSTRACT
Bankruptcy is an institution comprising of many facets. It is an economic criterion, a continuing legal status, a sanction, a safe haven, but most important of all it is a legal procedure designed to deal with the consequences of debt. A statutory demand must be properly served and the law needs to maintain a careful balance between protecting a debtor who may be genuinely unaware of the demand and facilitating a creditor in enforcing a lawful debt. Individuals other than the debtor may suffer the consequences of procedural irregularity. The procedure for initiating bankruptcy was fundamentally changed by the 1985–86 reforms. An issue that frequently crops up in bankruptcy cases is whether on an appeal or review of a prior judicial decision fresh evidence can be admitted. Bankruptcy proceedings can be smothered at birth if the court exercises its jurisdiction to set aside a statutory demand. This well-used jurisdiction is detailed in r. 6.5 of the Insolvency Rules 1986.
