Unpaid Wages / Change Company Name / Sold Assets - Must be a legal issue?

[arbitro]

I am aware of company that owes thousands of pounds to ex-employees for unpaid wages, holidays and pensions.* This company also owes thousands of pounds to other companies where they have not made payment for materials they have purchased.

A number of the ex-employees attended an employment tribunal to challenge for unpaid wages after work with ACAS was completed.* The company did not attend this tribunal.* The judge awarded monies to all ex-employees.* The defendant has since refused to pay monies that is owed.* The company has also been issued with a fine from the government for not paying wages through their new scheme and are to be named on the government website.

A writ had been issued to instruct a high enforcement team to collect the monies owed.* The high enforcement team have attended on a number of occasions but have been unable to recover monies.* However the defendant has challenged the writ as he has now changed the name of his company to something different.* The defendant has also sold all of the assets from this company to another company that he owns.* He has then changed the name of the company that he sold the assets to.* He has named this as the original company name that owed the money. This company is now operating as normal.
I am aware the name change of the writ has been challenged by ex-employees and a court hearing is going to take place about this.* However the defendant has hired a solicitor who has sent paperwork to get ex-employees to sign to say the company name has changed and they have no assets to pay them.* They have also threatened if the solicitor attends court he will then be charging the ex-employees for them attending.

Surely all of this can’t be legal?* The defendant must be in the wrong here.*
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[arbitro]

Is anybody able to help here?

A bit further information today. One set of assets were sold on the day of employment tribunal and the second set a few weeks later, the day before the name change.*

[ULA]

Is the company a limited company registered at Companies House? In which case have you checked whether the company registration number has changed as a result of the name change?

Do you know whether payment has actually been made by the "new company" for the purchased assets of the "old company or has it just been a paper exercise?*
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[arbitro]

Is the company a limited company registered at Companies House? In which case have you checked whether the company registration number has changed as a result of the name change?

Do you know whether payment has actually been made by the "new company" for the purchased assets of the "old company or has it just been a paper exercise?

From my understanding, I believe the company number stayed the same when they changed their name.

It appears that the assets have been paid for by the director and his wife. Whats interesting is I have obtained a copy of the bank statement showing the sale. On the same day the assets are purchased almost the exact amount of money is sent out of the account and then placed back as the sale of goods. The payment was made to the company solicitor but then paid back in by the company director. Although a substantive amount of money was paid back in for the assets the balance closed on a minus for that day?
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[ULA]

I am not so sure of my facts when dealing with the enforcement of a tribunal award when it gets to this stage in the proceedings, so I would suggest that you do double check the situation.

However, I believe that if the company has only changed its name but still has the same company registration number, then it is still the same company as in the judgment/writ and enforcement can proceed.
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