A leading architects’ firm is to shut up shop it revealed yesterday.

Conyers & Associates (C&A) will close its doors at the start of March due to “personal circumstances”, a letter from president Charlita Saltus and managing director Malcolm Sutherland told suppliers.

The letter said: “We the shareholders of Conyers & Associates Ltd have made the decision to voluntarily liquidate the company and will cease doing business on March 3 2013.

“Although C&A Ltd was very much a going concern, personal circumstances have led us to this decision.”

Mr Sutherland, a 25-year veteran of the profession in the Bermuda, said he would be moving back to the UK.

He explained his wife, who had worked for HSBC Bermuda, had been relocated to the UK and that the couple’s daughter also lives there.

He added: “It’s sad about the company, but we have to move on. We just took the decision that we would put the company into voluntary liquidation and move on. It is somewhat reluctant and done sadly.”

Mr Sutherland said, however, said that he was exploring other business opportunities involving both the UK and Bermuda.

He added: “Charlita will take a bit of time to let the dust settle and she will carry on as a sole practitioner.”

Mr Sutherland joined the firm, then run by Harold Conyers, in 2002 and he and Ms Saltus bought the firm almost four years ago.

C&A hit the headlines last year after it was revealed it was paid $5 million by the former Progressive Labour Party Government to act as project manager on the controversial new Dame Lois Browne-Evans Building on Court Street, which houses Magistrates’ Court and Hamilton Police Station.

C&A, then controlled by former owner Mr Conyers, was appointed in 2008, halfway through the project, to act as construction managers, replacing Canadian firm Carruthers, Shaw & Partners (CS&P), who had designed the new building.

The new One Bermuda Alliance Government in 2013 paid CS&P $700,000 to settle a claim of breach of contract by the firm.

CS&P had originally sued for $1.4 million — $1.29 million for loss of fees because it had not been allowed to see the work through to the end and $118,000 for another, unrelated, Government project.

The letter to suppliers said that public notices formalising the winding-up of the firm would be published over the next few weeks.

It added: “Nevertheless, we wanted to ensure that you were properly informed and had adequate time to finalise any outstanding transactions.”

And the letter advised any businesses with questions about the firm’s closure to contact Ms Saltus or Mr Sutherland.