Major shareholders in the Ince Group told TradeWinds they plan to take legal action against the collapsed law firm’s officers for making what the shareholders claim were misleading representations about their investments.
The group of investors is being led by married couple Alan and Samantha Sellers, who together held almost 14% of Ince’s issued shares before the law firm went into the UK insolvency process of administration.
“It is regrettable to learn of the position with Ince Group Plc,” Alan Sellers said in a statement to TradeWinds. “Both Samantha and I, together with other shareholders, have already intimated a claim for compensation and loss against the directors/officers of Ince Group Plc.
“The claim includes a claim for misrepresentation, breach of duty, neglect and misleading statements made to us in connection with our investment. Owing to the outstanding claim, we are unable to add anything further at this stage.”
Alan owned 8.4% of Ince and Samantha held 5.5% as of 3 January.
Ince’s biggest shareholder is corporate investor Beckington Limited, part of Knox D’Arcy Investments, with 9.9%.
TradeWinds understands that Ince Group has already been notified of the claim in London.
The law firm has been contacted for comment on the matter, but did not immediately provide a response.
Ince, once shipping’s foremost law firm, collapsed on Wednesday after an unidentified major creditor pulled support from the firm, which has blamed its financial problems on a long-overdue audit that it said has sapped the company’s cash flows.
Quantuma has been appointed as administrator and aims to sell the Ince Group’s business to a third-party purchaser “as soon as possible”, a release said on Wednesday.
It remains unclear as to which major creditor or creditors made the decision to pull the plug on Ince.
Ince has around £17m ($21.1m) in bank debt provided by Investec and owes what is understood to be a significant sum in unpaid tax to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
On Wednesday, the law firm said it had been in discussions with its major lender Investec, HMRC and other creditors to gain support, but said that rescue talks failed.
A HMRC spokesperson told TradeWinds: “We take a supportive approach to dealing with customers who have tax debts, and do everything we can to help those who engage with us to get out of debt, such as offering instalment plans.”
A source with knowledge of the matter told TradeWinds on Wednesday that Investec has stood by Ince throughout its troubles and has not pulled its support from the firm. The banking group has declined to comment.
Global offices distancing themselves
Some clarity is already emerging about how Ince affiliates in Asia will continue to operate, as TradeWinds has reported.
One former Ince ally, Singapore-based firm Incisive Law, is unaffected and has quietly lived a separate existence from Ince for some time already.
In Hong Kong, the Ince partnership is expected by some observers to sail on separately as well.
Meanwhile, across East Asia the status of the global firm’s operations varies, and the legal form of incorporation of some branches and affiliates may shield them from the problems of the London-based group.
Ince Group’s former partner in Germany told TradeWinds that it is not affected by the UK law firm’s troubles after parting ways just days before it applied to go into administration.
Ince Germany in Hamburg ended its relationship with Ince on 31 March and rebranded as ANCON BLUE LAW.
