The total cost of the Cobbetts administration has reached £844,000, and the process is set to last for another six months, new documents have revealed.

The cost was confirmed in an administrator’s progress report up to December last year prepared by KPMG and filed at Companies House last week.

From August to December, the joint administrators incurred time costs of £226,324, representing 626 hours at an average rate of £361 per hour.

Legal fees of £53,433 and disbursements of £876 have also been paid to international firm Pinsent Masons.

National firm Cobbetts, with headquarters in Manchester, was placed into administration at the High Court on 6 February last year and an immediate pre-pack sale to DWF completed.

Cobbetts owed £91.6m to unsecured creditors, who were expected to recoup under 2p in the pound. The sale of its work in progress, and office furniture and equipment has so far realised £3.9m.

KPMG has now applied for a further six months to carry out the administration, with the present arrangement set to finish on 5 February.

Ongoing issues include monitoring work in progress collections by DWF, facilitating payment to the bank, the surrender of remaining leases and the payment of a dividend to preferential creditors if necessary.