It is usual for administrators to ask for an administration to be extended by 12 months – but we have seen the courts agree to longer periods. For example, certain of the Lehman group company administrations were extended by periods of four and six years – having previously been extended by eight. In the more … Continue Reading
The date that a winding up petition is presented has consequences – consequences for the company subject to the petition, its directors, the petitioning creditor and it is also important in the context of a subsequent liquidation where the date is relevant to claims which a liquidator can bring. Although seemingly a simple question, the … Continue Reading
Following the decisions in Fore Fitness and Active Wear – where the court examined the validity of decisions made by a sole director of a company that operated wholly or partly under the Model Articles[1]– the position was not entirely settled. In the context of administration appointments where the validity of an appointment rests on … Continue Reading
The powers of investigation afforded to office-holders under s. 236 of the Insolvency Act 1986 are there to enable the court to help an office-holder discover the true facts concerning the affairs of a company, its trading and dealings, to allow the office-holder to complete their function. These powers are wide reaching and include compelling … Continue Reading
Earlier this year ICC Judge Baister handed down judgment in the case of UKCloud Ltd, building on the decision in Avanti[1] by providing further analysis around the distinction between fixed and floating charges – following a dearth of caselaw on the point since Spectrum.[2] This blog pulls together some of the key messages and practical … Continue Reading
In the case of JDK Construction Limited the Court of Appeal had to consider whether an earlier decision by a High Court judge that liquidators had been validly appointed was correct. The answer to that question turned on whether the resolutions that the company had passed to place the company into voluntary liquidation were valid … Continue Reading
It seems like s248 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (“Act”) is flavour of the month with the judiciary at the moment, with two recent cases analysing this in the context of administration extensions (read our previous blogs here and here ) and now a further decision considering this in the context of converting an administration … Continue Reading
There is a tension between UK insolvency and pensions laws. Put simply, this is because insolvency laws look to protect all of the company’s creditors, but pension laws seek to protect the interests of the pension creditors alone. When new offences and criminal sanctions were introduced in 2021 enabling TPR to issue fines of up … Continue Reading
As practitioners we pour over notices of intention to appoint (NOIA) and notices of appointment of administrators (NOA) to make sure every detail is accurate. Why? Because no one wants to risk an invalid appointment because there was a minor mistake or error that was overlooked. Understandably errors occur, particularly when the appointment of administrators … Continue Reading
For those that are that way inclined (which includes us at #SPBRestructuring!), the 500 plus page Wright v Chappell judgment which sets out the BHS wrongful trading claim against its former directors makes for an interesting read. It paints a colourful picture of the downfall of the BHS group, from the point that it was … Continue Reading
No, it isn’t. We now have two cases where the Court has decided that the consent of paid secured creditors is not required when extending an administration under para. 78 of Schedule B1 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (the “Act”). In Boughey & Anor v Toogood International Transport and Agricultural Services Ltd [2024] EWHC 1425 … Continue Reading
This question was considered in the recent case of Pindar where the judge concluded that an administration had been validly extended where the consent of one of the secured creditors (who had been paid) was not obtained. Many insolvency practitioners are likely to welcome this decision with open arms given that it can be problematic … Continue Reading
The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA has issued a consultation about proposed changes to its Guidance for Insolvency Practitioners. The aim is to clarify existing guidance and provide more information to insolvency practitioners (IPs) on how to deal with regulated firms. The proposed amendments (shown as track changes in this document) intend to update the … Continue Reading
Last year we discussed the impact of funding insolvency litigation following the Supreme Court decision in PACCAR where the court found that litigation funding agreements (LFAs) were damaged based agreements. This meant that unless LFAs complied with the Damages Based Agreements Regulations 2013 (DBA Regulations), they were unenforceable. Although concluding that the outcome of the … Continue Reading
Following our previous alert, in which we highlighted an issue with entries relating to registered security maintained at Companies House being incorrectly updated to indicate that they had in fact been discharged without the awareness of the relevant company or security holder, it appears that some (potentially all) unauthorised filings have been – or are in … Continue Reading
For those unfamilar with the various insolvency processes it is not always easy to differentiate between them. In our latest insight we have produced a quick guide to administration that explains the procedure, benefits and effect of administration on third parties, including employees, suppliers and landlords. Our quick guide also explains the administrator’s role and … Continue Reading
In recent months, there have been a few changes regarding MVLs which we have set out in this insight as a helpful reminder to practitioners. Our insight considers the changes to filing statements of solvency, comments on the practice of remote swearing those statements and highlights the change in policy regarding clearance letters from HMRC.… Continue Reading
Over the past week, reports have emerged about filings that have been made at Companies House marking a charge as satisfied, without the company’s or relevant lender’s knowledge. There were rumours last week, which were simply that, because Companies House had not publicly announced any issue, but, as we have seen over the weekend and … Continue Reading
On 7th February 2024, Mr Justice Richards heard closing submissions in the English High Court for a contested sanction hearing for Aggregate Group’s Part 26A restructuring plan. This hearing presented one of the first opportunities to analyse how the Adler decision will affect restructuring plans going forward.… Continue Reading
Changes are afoot to the statutory regime governing special administrations for regulated water companies (the SAR) following the publication of a suite of new legislation. Impact of the changes on pension trustees Further details of the changes are set out below, but perhaps the most significant change for creditors generally, and pension trustees in particular, … Continue Reading
On 23 January 2024, the Court of Appeal handed down its much anticipated judgment[1] on the appeal of the Adler restructuring plan pursuant to Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006 (“RP”), which was sanctioned by the High Court on 12 April 2023[2], with judgment setting out the reasoning for that decision handed down on … Continue Reading
The Court of Appeal has, today, overturned the High Court’s decision to sanction the Part 26A restructuring plan put forward by the Adler Group (the “Plan”). Following the Plan’s sanction by Judge Leech in the High Court in April 2023, dissenting creditors lodged an appeal, which was heard before the Court of Appeal in late … Continue Reading
The judgment handed down in the matter of CB&I UK Ltd suggests that the English Courts will not expedite or truncate sanction hearing timetables to accommodate requests from companies which have applied for a restructuring plan under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006 (“Restructuring Plan”) unless there are good reasons for doing so. Distressed … Continue Reading
There are a few things that we can be almost certain of in 2024, and others are things to add to the watchlist, but with a potential change in government on the cards, there are likely to be a few curveballs thrown into the mix that none of us can predict.… Continue Reading
