The Accountant in Bankruptcy and Receivership Cases.

Abstract This article presents information on the bankruptcy legislation. This legislation protects the honest debtor from the greedy shylock and from the moneylender who is keenly alert to the possibilities of securing the preferential positions in and to the bankrupt's assets. To gain precarious positions, some indulgent creditor insists on a receivership or drives the distraught debtor into bankruptcy. Since most receiverships and bankruptcies involve persons in commercial pursuits who at one time or another, as a matter of course, maintained books of account, bank accounts, or other pertinent business records. The properly trained accountant fits well into the proceedings which have as their purpose the true application of the bankruptcy laws in locating, identifying, evaluating, administering, and distributing the property of the estate for the benefit of, first to the claimants who because of the provision of law have a prior position, second, to the secured creditors, third to the general creditors, fourth and finally, to the bankrupt himself. Salary, bonus, commission, special and drawing accounts of individuals, partners, officers and directors particularly demand the attention of the accountant. It does not always follow that these individuals use direct means for illegally transferring assets to themselves or agents. The almost universal spectacle of the friendly receivership in order to avoid excessive rent liabilities under leases may lead the accountant into believing that all the leaseholds there under are valueless.