International Insolvency – Australia – Ray Mansueto

WRP Legal & Advisory specialise in insolvency and restructuring situations. Focusing on turnaround, re-organisation and restructure when working with businesses and company directors, and all aspects of insolvency arising from a formal appointment.

Our key strengths in insolvency practice are:
– providing innovative solutions;
– cost-effective advice;
– achieving commercial and strategic outcomes for our clients’ needs.

Ray Mansueto is an insolvency specialist drawing on many years of big-firm expertise and experience to provide bespoke service and outcomes. Regularly working with clients’ existing accounting, financial and legal advisers, WRP’s insolvency team delivers the best possible outcomes for our clients.

A pre-eminent insolvency lawyer, Ray is a consultant at WRP Legal & Advisory. With more than three decades of practice, Ray has a wealth of experience in litigious and transactional work in the insolvency and turnaround space. He has acted for clients in business matters, representing significant business interests in transactions and litigation.

Ray was previously a Partner with Piper Alderman, and spent a decade heading up the insolvency and restructuring team at Minter Ellison SA/NT. Before joining WRP Legal & Advisory in 2024, Ray operated his own law firm, Mansueto Legal, for more than 13 years.

He is recognised as Pre-eminent by Doyles Guide and is listed in Who’s Who Legal Australia and New Zealand, as well as in Best Lawyers, having been named Best Lawyer for South Australia on three occasions. In addition, he has written on various insolvency topics in insolvency journals and other publications.

Ray draws upon his experience acting for a variety of clients – across the spectrum of insolvency appointments – to assist individuals and companies, as well as company directors, in dealing with financial issues impacting their businesses, and also to represent them in dealing with their creditors to achieve the best outcomes possible. Clients include:

– Australia’s major banks;
– financial institutions;
– consulting to insolvency practitioners;
– corporates in commercial bankruptcy;
– secured and unsecured creditors;
– individual clients and business operators, including those related to real estate transactions, as well as commercial landlord/tenant disputes.

This is very important, as often it is this forward planning that can help businesses avoid pitfalls and litigation.

Assisting in negotiations with banks and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) on bankruptcy, to develop debt agreements and contested creditor petitions, is a challenge that we thrive at.

WRP Legal & Advisory regularly supports the corporate sector in respect of business-related debt and assistance with formulating reconstruction and restructuring plans for distressed companies and assets.

In recent years, there has also been an increase in advice sought by directors and Boards on their duties, as well as representing them in investigations or actions taken by liquidators, the Australian Securities Investments Commission (ASIC), the ATO, Fair Work Commission or other regulatory bodies – such as Director Penalty Notices, garnishee notices, public examinations and safe harbour from insolvent trading.

Australia and New Zealand. Most of our clients operate in South Australia.

Due to the ever-growing digital economy, in the majority of insolvency matters we assist in the investigation of fraud and recovery action, as well as implementing the various processes that can be utilised to trace, freeze and recover assets. The digital economy and FinTech will continue to impact and shape our practices.

Continuing to stay at the top of specialist knowledge in financial technology is essential, as FinTech disruption continues to transform the way we do business as a society. Insolvency laws will continue to be reviewed and updated. Potential insolvency clients will need to rely on only the most experienced and seasoned practitioners for their expertise in deriving the most innovative solutions for their circumstances.

Some firms will adopt AI to digitise basic document management processes in their insolvency case administration. However, the intricacies of insolvency practice put a limit on how effective AI can support a lawyer in an insolvency matter.

The economic state on a global level will continue to shape corporate business objectives and practices. We may see some temporary and permanent amendments to insolvency laws, similar to what took place as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.