2. What are the main functions of the Official Receiver's Office?

The Official Receiver's Office provides an insolvency service to creditors and the public. The Office has five divisions: the Case Management Division, Legal Services Division 1, Legal Services Division 2, the Financial Services Division and the Departmental Administration Division.

i) Case Management Division

The Case Management Division is headed by the Assistant Official Receiver (Case Management) and is staffed by Insolvency Officers. The Division is responsible for the realisation of assets, the recovery of book debts, the adjudication of claims of creditors, the distribution of dividends, investigation into the causes of the failure, conduct and financial affairs of the debtor or company, the processing of the release of liquidators and trustees in bankruptcy, and the administration of the ordinances relating to liquidation and bankruptcy.

ii) Legal Services Division 1

The Legal Services Division 1 is headed by the Assistant Official Receiver (Legal Services) 1. It is responsible for providing detailed legal advice on all aspects of the administration of insolvent estate civil litigation that relates to insolvency cases, and for providing a comprehensive litigation service for the benefit of insolvent estates, including appearing in court hearings and instructing barristers in complicated cases.

iii) Legal Services Division 2

The Legal Services Division 2 is headed by the Assistant Official Receiver (Legal Services) 2. Its main functions are to provide general legal advisory services, investigate and prosecute insolvency offenders, make applications for the disqualification of company directors, liquidators and receivers, and provide training for Insolvency Officers.

iv) Financial Services Division

The Financial Services Division is headed by the Assistant Official Receiver (Financial Services) and staffed by Treasury Accountants and Accounting Grade Officers. Its main functions include performing financial and accounting investigations into insolvency cases, conducting statutory audits of accounts that are submitted by outside liquidators, managing and investing insolvency monies and supervising outside liquidators.

v) Departmental Administration Division

The Departmental Administration Division is headed by the Departmental Secretary and staffed by General Grade Officers. The main functions of the Division are to provide general administrative support and a translation service, to arrange the storage and retrieval of seized documents for insolvency cases and to manage human resources.