Plexus Legal: Administration has been far more extensive than expected
The administrators of Plexus Legal have now racked up more than £650,000 in fees in less than 18 months, more than twice their original estimate.
However, last year Interpath Advisory received creditor approval to draw down no more than £639,000, even though it anticipated that its total fees to the end of the administration would be £706,590.
Interpath was appointed on 7 July 2023 and immediately sold the defendant law firm, which had 540 staff, to Axiom Ince, which itself went into administration and was closed down by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) in October 2023.
Creditors originally approved Interpath’s post-administration fees at £307,612 but agreed the increase last summer after the administrators explained how additional time was needed for multiple reasons, including the SRA intervention into Axiom Ince and having to extend the administration by a further 12 months.
The most recent report of the administrators, to 6 January 2025, said they had recorded 1,406 hours to date, at an average hourly rate of £466 per hour. Interpath’s current hourly rates start at £839 for a managing director and £779 for a director, bottoming out at £177 for support staff.
In addition, Interpath’s legal adviser, City firm Macfarlanes, has been paid £180,000 so far, while Pinsent Masons – acting as the solicitor manager of Plexus, as required by the SRA – has received nearly £270,000.
The Interpath figures also do not include the fees for the other two, smaller group companies: Plexus Law was the designated corporate member for Plexus Legal and did not trade, while Plexus North was its Scottish operation. Both administrations have now concluded.
Interpath charged £114,698 for Plexus Law – 254 hours at an average hourly rate of £452 – and £164,642 for Plexus North – 368 hours at an average of £447 an hour.
AIB Group (UK) is owed £4.6m as Plexus Legal and Law’s secured creditor but has only recovered £185,000 and the report said nothing more would be forthcoming.
The £38,864 claims of staff, as preferential creditors, have been satisfied in full, while HM Revenue & Customs, the secondary preferential creditor, is owed nearly £5.7m. It was paid £151,000, 2.75p in the pound, at the end of last year and the report said it was likely a second payment would be made in the future, although the amount was not clear at the moment.
Unsecured creditors will not receive anything.
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