Only a month ago we were singing the praises of the CVA and calling them the saviour of the high street following the creditors’ approval of the BHS CVA. (See our earlier blog Move over Mary Portas, CVA’s are the real saviour of the High Street). In the last week, administrators were appointed to both BHS and … Continue Reading
In bankruptcy cases, things often move more slowly than people would like or expect. In addition to dealing with oversight by the bankruptcy court and the United States Trustee, a debtor typically spends significant time engaging with its lenders and secured creditors, committees of unsecured creditors, and any number of other key stakeholders. Court approval … Continue Reading
A bankruptcy court wrote that filing for bankruptcy is “powerful magic.” By finding federal preemption of state law fraudulent transfer claims, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in the long-running Tribune case showed just how powerful this magic can be. The Tribune saga began in 2007 when, during steep changes in the publishing industry, … Continue Reading
The latest iteration of the Sun Capital litigation has confirmed once again what many restructuring professionals have known for a long time – that pension liabilities have a nasty habit of kicking investors where it hurts, often when least expected. Our recent blog explains the decision and provides some insights on the case. One of … Continue Reading
Due to the introduction of new tax legislation on 6th April 2016, distributions made to shareholders of companies undergoing Members’ Voluntary Liquidation (MVL) are now treated as income (rather than capital) and are taxed accordingly. The result is that the tax rate on MVL proceeds has shot up to a staggering 28%, as detailed in our previous article. For distributions to … Continue Reading
Recently, lawyers for 50 Cent fought against the appointment of a bankruptcy examiner to investigate Instagram photos the rapper posted of himself lying next to piles of hundred dollar bills. In one picture, the bills spelled out the word “BROKE.” The humor of the photos was lost on the Office of the U.S. Trustee, who … Continue Reading
The minefield of surrenders and assignments A lease can often be the most financially draining contract a company has hanging around its neck, which can be particularly burdensome when the tenant company is already facing financial distress. Administrators are regularly faced with the task of relieving the administration estate of an onerous, costly lease and … Continue Reading
Promociones Habitat SA, the Spanish residential homebuilder, has completed a €1.45 billion restructuring which was the first refinancing of an existing composition agreement to use the provisions in a debt/equity swap within Spain’s new company rescue laws. In 2008 Promociones Habitat SA (Habitat)applied for voluntary bankruptcy with accumulated liabilities of 2,840 million euros. Two years later, … Continue Reading
From April 2016 companies and limited liability partnerships (“LLPs”) (except for publicly traded companies) will be required to create and maintain a register of persons with “significant control” over the company (“PSC Register”) and in due course send that information to Companies House where it will be publically searchable. What’s the purpose of the new … Continue Reading
IBA Insolvency Restructuring International in its Vol 10 No 1, March 2016 published an article by Sergey Treshchev and Elena Malevich, two practitioners in our Moscow office on Russia: Recent Developments in the Bankruptcy of Banks. The article provides a brief outline of the particularities of insolvency proceedings in relation to banks and credit organisations in … Continue Reading
The BHS CVA is now in effect following a successful ‘yes’ vote on 23 March 2016 when 95% of creditors voted in favour of the proposals. The BHS CVA is the latest in a long line of CVAs that have been successfully used to reduce the burden of onerous lease arrangements across large retail portfolios following … Continue Reading
What is this all about? India is proposing a new insolvency and bankruptcy code. It’s all part of the “Make In India” campaign by Narendra Modi’s government who are trying to attract businesses to India. Current law It does not appear that there has been a single separate law for bankruptcy legislation in the country’s … Continue Reading
From 6 April 2016, debtors in England and Wales who wish to enter bankruptcy will need to apply online and will no longer be able to petition the Court. The final form statutory instruments to introduce the necessary changes were published on 22 February 2016. It will cost £130 for a debtor to apply for his own bankruptcy … Continue Reading
The French government has made the assessment that certain small commercial courts were regularly finding themselves confronted with cases of great complexity, only because the company in difficulty had its head office in the jurisdiction of these courts. It therefore announced the establishment of specialised commercial courts (TCS) which will process the most complex insolvency proceedings. … Continue Reading
On March 1, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court heard argument on the seemingly simple question of what “actual fraud” means. The Court’s decision will have a significant impact on the reach of the exception to discharge under Section 523(a)(2)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code. The end result of a “successful” bankruptcy case is a discharge of … Continue Reading
The interest rate mis-selling scandal took another twist recently when a landmark legal case was dismissed by the High Court. Had the case been successful it would have challenged the banks’ £2.1bn compensation scheme set-up to settle inappropriate interest rate swaps – however the decision only brings temporary relief for the banks. Background A judicial review … Continue Reading
Last week, we discussed the complexities of metals exploration chapter 11 bankruptcy cases and addressed several of the notable issues that arise in those cases. The discussion of significant issues continues below. Enforceability of Rights of First Refusal Mining exploration is often undertaken by partners, one of which may contribute the mining properties and the … Continue Reading
The past several years have not been kind to commodities exploration companies. The price of gold dropped to $1,051/oz. in November 2015, a level that had not been seen since 2009. Although the price of gold rebounded somewhat in January and February 2016 to just over $1,200/oz., the price has steadily decreased after peaking at … Continue Reading
The duties and obligations of directors in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are drawn from various legislative sources; there is no consolidated legislative framework dealing with the duties and obligations of directors under UAE Law. Squire Patton Boggs’ Dubai office have published a summary of the principal duties and liabilities of a director in the UAE, … Continue Reading
It is very much the nature of the job that appointed Office Holders are required to make difficult and challenging decisions on each and every case they take. On some occasions those decisions are well received – on others, not so well. Creditors affected by those decisions can take comfort that the Office Holder is … Continue Reading
The Federal Court of Australia has approved a settlement, effectively resolving one of the most complex corporate insolvencies in Australian history. On 18 December 2015 the Federal Court of Australia approved a settlement relating to inter-company loans and disputed assets between the liquidators of Lehman Brothers Australia Ltd (LBA) and American parent company Lehman Brothers … Continue Reading
Individuals may want to think twice before seeking relief under chapter 11 following a recent decision from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. In Zachary v. California Bank & Trust, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a bankruptcy court’s order denying confirmation of a plan of reorganization in which individual debtors proposed to retain their pre-petition and post-petition … Continue Reading
2015 saw the global oil and gas market in turmoil and 2016 looks set to continue the trend. 16 January 2016 saw the lifting of sanctions against Iran, and critically signified its re-entry as a major OPEC player to the already saturated global oil and gas market. With the world’s fourth-biggest oil reserves, an immediate … Continue Reading
The trading environment for Britain’s pubs has never been tougher. According to the Campaign for Real Ale, 29 pubs close every week in the UK, with pubs selling approximately a third of the number of pints that they used to sell in the late 1970s. With the number of failing pubs on the increase, insolvency … Continue Reading
