For some people, the temptation of taking money from the company they work for is too much. There are many ways in this scenario can arise and it makes sense that people with real power, such as directors, will have a genuine chance of moving money from the firm to themselves. When this happens, and many people are placed at risk, it is important that appropriate punishments are handed out.
This particular story revolves around the disqualification of David Marsh, who was formerly the Finance Director for Euromix Concrete Limited in Chelmsford. Marsh was disqualified for a period of 8 years with the use of concealed bank accounts and the abuse of an invoice discounting facility counting against him in the long run.
Marsh will be banned from being a director for 8 years
The ban will run for a period of 8 years and it will prevent Marsh from, directly or indirectly, being involved in the promotion, the formation or even the management of a firm for the stated time period. This is a common type of punishment but the length of the punishment indicates that Marsh’s actions and activities were deemed to be of a serious nature.
The first that people were aware of discrepancies was back in March of 2013 when an audit was taking place at the funders of the Invoice Discounting Agreement. This made it very clear that Marsh had been claiming money for invoices that didn’t exist. It was also apparent that he was claiming to have made payments to the discounters when there was no proof of cheques being baked. This activity was hidden by a number of inter-company funding movements and through the use of concealed bank accounts.
The company went bust in 2013
As soon as this was discovered, Marsh was removed from his position at Euromix and there was the appointment of an interim finance director. This interim director was in place as the company continued to trade up to the point they fell into administration, which occurred in December of 2013.
The Insolvency Service hopes that this disqualification will not only prevent people from being a victim of Marsh again, it is hoped that it will send out a signal to other directors that may think that this is an option for them to bring in money. Many firms are in financial difficulty at the moment and there are many people who are greedy enough to want to make more money, no matter how illegal the methods are.
This had the hallmarks of a calculated scheme, and the level of time and thought that went into the process would suggest that Marsh knew exactly what he was doing. When you have someone acting in such a manner, it can place a number of companies at risk, and this means that many people’s livelihoods will be at risk. There will always be people who say that banning a director for a lengthy period of time is a harsh punishment but there needs to be some form of deterrent to prevent others from acting in the same manner.
The fact that many people eventually lost their job at the company may not be wholly related to the actions of Marsh, but it certainly wouldn’t have helped matters. In the current economic climate, it is important to realise how vital jobs are for a local community and anyone who plays a major role in placing these jobs in jeopardy needs to be punished to the full extent of the regulations. The fact that Marsh will not be legally allowed to act in a director’s position is an indicator of the seriousness of his actions and the impact that he has had on people in the local area.
When it comes to director disqualification work, there can be a lot of emotions involved, on all sides of the debate. There is a need for defence solicitors to remove themselves from the personal arguments and the emotions, and focus solely on the facts of the case. Sometimes a director will be happy to take whatever punishment is coming to them and at other times there will be a desire to fight against any punishment that is imposed. This is where a reliable defence solicitor with considerable experience in this field will be able to offer guidance and advice on what is the best approach to take.
Andrew Reilly is a freelance writer with a focus on news stories and consumer interest articles. He has been writing professionally for 9 years but has been writing for as long as he can care to remember. When Andrew isn’t sat behind a laptop or researching a story, he will be found watching a gig or a game of football.