Companies Act 2014 section 617

Costs, etc. in winding up

Section 617 establishes the order of priority in which costs, charges and expenses properly incurred during the winding up of a company must be paid from the company's property.

• All proper winding-up costs, including the liquidator's remuneration, rank ahead of all other claims against the company's property, after first deducting asset preservation and realisation expenses and any court-approved costs of a prior voluntary liquidator.
• These costs must be paid in a strict order of priority: petition costs first, then creditors' meeting expenses, then statement of affairs costs, then the liquidator's disbursements, solicitor's costs, remuneration, and finally any committee of inspection out-of-pocket expenses.
• The court retains discretion to vary the order of priority in a court-directed winding up.
• Any person who has advanced funds to cover these winding-up costs (other than creditors' meeting or statement of affairs costs) is entitled to reimbursement from the company's property at the same priority ranking as the costs they funded.

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