SUPREME COURT.

Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2132, 7 March 1870, Page 2

SUPREME COURT.

IN BANKRUPTCY, Tins Day. (Before Mr Justice Ward.) Re Hugh M ‘Master. —The 14th inat. was appointed for the bankrupt’s last examination. 11 1; John and Alkx R. Hay. — Mr Kenyon moved that the appointment of Mr Horne as trustee be confirmed. Mr Smith, on behalf of creditors, objected to the confirmation. He did not exactly know what course had to be pursued when the confirmation of a trustee’s appointment was objected to on the part of a creditor, but he presumed that inasmuch as it required to be confirmed, any person interested in the confirmation not being granted might appear to show cause, if he had any.

Upon this ground he opposed the application. In the first place there was an affidavit before the Court, made by one of the creditors, Mr J. L. iiutterwortVi. It was to the effect that a meeting of the bankrupt’s creditors was held in Dunedin on March 2, which deponent attended j that he expressed dissent at the election of Mr Horne ; that Mr Horne was resident in the city of Melbourne, and without the jurisdiction of the Court. Here a person residing without the jurisdiction of the Court had been chosen trustee, and he (Mr Smith) submitted that such a thing was contrary to the spirit and policy of the Bankruptcy Act, several sections of which showed distinctly that the trustee was to be amenable to the orders of the Court. It appeared by the minutes of the meeting of creditors, that Mr Horne elected himself as trustee by exercising certain powers which he professed to hold on the part of absentee creditors. The 227 th section provided that the trustee must be resident within the jurisdiction of the Court, and the trustee ought to have been prepared to show that he intended to remain within the jurisdiction until his duties as trustee had been fulfilled. Such answer not being forthcoming, upon Mr Butterwoith’s affidavit, it must be assumed that it had been sufficiently shown that he was only here for the temporary purpose of proving the debts of those creditors whom he was alleged to represent; and he was about to depart without the jurisdiction. Under those circumstances it would bo a contravention of the policy of the Act for the Court to confirm the appointment. He had to ask that the powers of the attorney on which Mr Horne claimed to act might be produced. Mr Kenyon, who appeared for the trustee, said that he did not produce them at that stage of the proceedings. Mr Smith submitted the trustee should be called upon to do so. He had been instructed that the powers were insufficient for the purposes which th y professed. They purported to be executed by firms, and in that respect were defective. In answer to the Judge,

The Registrar said that all the creditors opposed Mr Horne’s appointment; but his power to vote was not objected to until alter his appointment. Mr Smith submitted that that objection ougLt to be decided before deciding upon the order of confirmation. There was a further objection. Mr Horne swore that the debts due to the creditors he represented were, “ to the best of his knowledge, information, and belief,” owing. That did not satisfy the requirements of section 207. Mr Kenyon suggested that the form in which toe matter should come before the Court was either upon application to expunge proof of debt or upon motion to set aside the appointment. Mr Macassey, who appeared for the bankrupts, also suggested that the matter should take the form of an application to expunge proof of debt. After some discussion, the matter was allowed to stand over, it being understood that Mr Smith would take one of the courses suggested. Re D. H, Miller. —Mr Macassey applied to have the resolution arrived at at a meeting of creditors, agreeing to accept a composition of 6s 8d in the £ confirmed, and to suspend proceedings for a month. Both applications were granted. Be Walter Bell. —Mr Macassey said that, according to the order of the Court, another meeting of creditors 'in this estate was held on Friday to elect a trustee in the room of Mr T. A. Little, removed; but th« trustees in Little’s estate again appointed that gentleman. He could scarcely conceive anything more derogatory to the Court, and he hoped it would treat the election as void. He had to ask for a rule nisi, calling upon Little’s trustees to show cause why F. P. Mansfield should not be appointed trustee ; or why the choice of F. A. Little should not be set aside, and the trustees pay the cost of the application. Rule granted, to be made returnable on Monday next. Re W. J. Henninguam. —The bankrupt was again examined by Messrs Macassey and Cook, but not having executed the surrender of his policy of life assurance, as ordered, the decision of the Court was reserved. Re Samuel George Daniels.—Application for adjudication. Granted. Re Frederick Cuff.—Same. Re William Black, merchant, Oamaru. —This was an application for discharge. The bankrupt was examined by Mr Cook. The examination of witnesses was proceeding at half-past four o’clock.