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Jane Moir

Two former Peregrine Group executives have asked a judge to thwart legal action that could strip them of directorships for up to 15 years.

Philip Tose and Peter Wong Wing-cheong - former chairman and managing director - want to quash a decision to seek bans based on the pair's 'incompetence of a very high degree'.

A scathing account of the executives' management was set out in financial inspector Richard Farrant's report on the investment bank's 1998 collapse.

The Official Receiver's Office has since taken steps to have the pair banned from being directors as a matter of public interest.

Yesterday, the executives sought to quash the proceedings, claiming they were deprived of the chance to persuade the Official Receiver otherwise.

There was a 'real possibility they could have persuaded them it was not in the public interest to begin disqualification proceedings', counsel for the pair, barrister Jonathan Harris, argued at the Court of First Instance.

In the absence of fraud or dishonesty, a high standard of incompetence would have to be proven in any disqualification proceedings.

'Even on the face of the report, it is not clear that even if everything Mr Farrant says the applicants should have done had been done, it would have prevented Peregrine going into liquidation,' he said.

Counsel for the Official Receiver said the two executives had been given ample time and opportunity to put forward their case.

There was no expectation for the pair 'to have almost a mock trial' before the disqualification action, barrister Benjamin Yu said.

The case, before Mr Justice Michael Hartmann, continues on May 16.



Former Peregrine pair ask court to halt action to disqualify them