Official Receiver
An officer of the Insolvency Service of the United Kingdom, the Official Receiver (OR) is an officer of the court to which he is attached. The OR is therefore answerable to the courts for carrying out the courts' orders and for fulfilling his duties under law. He also acts on directions, instructions and guidance from the Service's Inspector General or, less often, from the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
Responsibilities
An OR has the following responsibilities:
acting as interim receiver or provisional liquidator: At any time after a petition for an insolvency order under s122 of the Insolvency Act 1986 has been presented, the court may appoint the OR as interim receiver (for an individual) or as provisional liquidator (for a company). This is to protect a debtor's property, or take control of a company' affairs, pending the outcome of the hearing of the petition;
acting as receiver, trustee or liquidator: The OR becomes receiver and manager when a court makes a bankruptcy order against an individual. The OR becomes the first liquidator when the court makes a winding up order against a company. The OR is responsible for protecting the assets of the insolvent person or company and will take immediate steps to secure any property or other assets. If no private sector insolvency practitioner (IP) is subsequently appointed, the OR becomes the trustee of the insolvent person's estate or the liquidator or remains the liquidator of the company; and