ARITA Member Spotlight

Joshua Robb RITP

04/03/2025

Joshua-Lee Robb RITP is Director at SV Partners, and has been involved with several successful reconstruction and turnaround exercises, including the preparation of Expert Reports to be used as evidence before the Federal Court of Australia and the Supreme Court of New South Wales. In 2019, Joshua was awarded the 2019 NSW Young Regional Advocate Award, and in 2021 was appointed the NSW Chairperson of the Regional Country Chairs Committee of Chartered Accounts Australia and New Zealand.

About you
How did you get into the profession?
I actually started as an intern under the Chartered Accountants Achiever Program as a teenager. The 4th and final week was a week in the insolvency division and the rest is history!

What’s the most satisfying appointment or assignment you’ve ever worked on and why?
I think the most satisfying appointment was a Court Liquidation, in which the Director had purposely been misleading, deceptive and misappropriating funds. After a lengthy battle and being appointed for almost 4 years, we were able to return almost 100c/$ to creditors.

What’s the biggest success you’ve had in your career?
I’d say the biggest success would be being registered as a Liquidator and Bankruptcy Trustee before I turned 30.

What do you find the most rewarding or enjoyable aspect of your work?
I personally find the most rewarding aspect is being able to restructure a business to allow it to continue operating into the future, closely followed by providing a return to creditors. 

Is there anyone who has inspired you along the way, either professionally or personally?
I’ve worked for some great Insolvency Practitioners along the way, however, without sounding too cliché, I’d definitely have to say my Partners. Without their constant support as a teenager working full time and studying full time, I probably wouldn’t have been able to have my registrations by the time I did.

What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned in your career?
The need to listen! The people we deal with have been hurt financially and emotionally, and sometimes just listening to them and allowing them to air their grievances, can make the process a whole lot easier.

About the profession
What’s the #1 skill you believe you need to be successful as an IP?
Patience!

What do you think is the biggest opportunity for the profession?
To help creditors recover as much of their lost funds as possible. 

What are the greatest challenges you face working in the profession?
I would have to say people’s perceptions!

What do you think needs to change in terms of the regulatory environment?
I think it would have to be the amount of red tape we have to comply with. The amount of regulation on basic tasks, has become cumbersome in the past decade and takes away from what we should be doing – investigating and returning funds to creditors.

How can IPs shift the negative perception of the profession?
That’s a simple one – do the right thing! If IP’s do the right thing, there would be no negative perception of the profession.

What is your number one piece of advice for business owners facing the prospect of insolvency?
Get advice early. You are much better to seek professional advice from an IP and not use it, than leave it too late to be able to use it.

You’re at a BBQ talking to a young person about to embark on their career. How would you sell them on the merits of working in the profession in one sentence?
It’s never a dull moment; every day and every client is different.

Looking back over your career, what are the biggest differences in how insolvency is practised now compared to when you started?
The amount of red tape! So much time is spent on providing information and complying with rules and regulations, that the focus has been removed from investigating affairs to be able to return funds to creditors. 

Outside of work
What are you passionate about outside of work?
If I can spend the day eating nice food and drinking a nice wine, while watching the tennis, I would be the happiest man on earth.

What items are at the top of your bucket list?
A trip to Antarctica.

What might people who only know you from your professional capacity be surprised to find out about you?
That deep down I am a family man… at the end of the day, family will always come first!