Sophia Farmer

Sophia advises on both contentious and non-contentious insolvency matters focusing on maximising realisation. She specialises in litigation recovery work on behalf of Bank’s, Insolvency Practitioners and individuals and offers a tailored solution to achieve an early recovery of debts and the swift resolution of disputes.

Main areas of practice

Sophia has a growing practice of personal insolvencies, acting on behalf of Trustees in Bankruptcy to realise assets, defend challenges to Trustees’ remuneration, obtain Possession and Sale Orders and Income Payment Orders, and advise on antecedent transactions.

Sophia works with a number of local authorities’ to assist with the collection of debts either by using a fully funded bankruptcy service to recovery council tax arrears, national non-domestic rates and over-paid benefits or by placing charging orders over the property.

Sophia is regularly instructed by individuals in respect of annulments, and defends applications in insolvency proceedings for the recovery of assets and transactions to defraud creditors.

Sophia assists with all aspects of corporate insolvencies and has been instructed to appoint administrators by qualifying floating charge holders, disclaim leases on behalf of a liquidator, recover unpaid rent, pursue unpaid director loans, transactions at an undervalue and challenge preference payments.

Sophia regularly carries out Security Reviews on behalf of HSBC bank and has been successful in making applications to the Court for a declaration to perfect security and rectify the companies charges register.

Significant experience

Personal Insolvency and Litigation

• Instructed by Joint Trustees in Bankruptcy to recover UK property that vests in the bankruptcy estate but is registered to a dissolved Company in Belize, also providing advice in the respect of Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 proceedings (ongoing)
• Successfully defended an application to challenge the Trustees remuneration and obtain a Possession and Sale Application in respect of outstanding bankruptcy estate costs (2016)
• Currently acting on behalf of an individual to defend an application pursuant to section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (transaction to defraud creditors) in respect of an alleged “sham” legal charge. The matter is listed for a four day hearing in early 2018. (ongoing)
• Instructed to advise  Joint Trustees in Bankruptcy in respect of a bankrupt with mental capacity issues and the appointment of a deputy via the  Court of Protection (2016)

Corporate Insolvency

• Assisting Liquidators with the investigations into the transfer of properties and issued an application pursuant to section 236 of the Insolvency Act to question the directors and to obtain company documents (2017)
• Pursuing a director for an unpaid director loan account for the sum of £330,000 and a preferential transaction claim pursuant to section 239 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (ongoing)
• Assisting Joint Liquidators recovery property transferred at an undervalue by the company directors and pursue misfeasance claims against the directors (ongoing)
• Assisting with the appointment of Administrators by number of companies, including a famous Swansea call centre and (2015)
• Securing and recovering a historical debt arising from a loan agreement between individuals and two companies in the sum of £1.4 million (2015)
• Sophia is currently assisting in an unfair prejudice petition on behalf of a minority shareholder relating to hotel projects located in central London with a minimum value of £25-30 million (ongoing).

Public Sector

• Instructed to recover historical unpaid National Non-Domestic Rates from a company registered in Panama (ongoing).

Expertise

• Insolvency

Career

Sophia joined Blake Morgan as a Legal Assistant in the Insurance Litigation team in 2009 before moving to the Dispute Management Group in 2011.

Sophia worked predominantly with the Restructuring and Insolvency team whilst undertaking the Graduate Fast-track Diploma with the Chartered Institute of legal Executives and qualified as a Chartered Legal Executive in 2014.  Sophia has continued to specialise in Restructuring and Insolvency whilst completing the Legal Practice on a part-time basis at Cardiff University.

Sophia qualified as a Solicitor in October 2016. She was promoted to Associate in July 2021.