After 2 months of lockdown last Sunday the UK Prime Minister announced the conditional plan to get employees who cannot work from home back into the workplace and the framework within which the we may take tentative steps to increase societal connections. On Monday the UK Government published its 60-page Covid-19 Recovery Strategy dealing with … Continue Reading
As the world remains in lockdown, the Coronavirus pandemic continues to affect almost every business, impacting profits, customer interaction and ultimately threatening the survival of many businesses. New studies have begun to show the impact of the national lockdown on the UK’s business community. The Opinium-Cebr Business Distress Tracker (the “Tracker”), created by the Centre … Continue Reading
What should you do if another business (i.e. a supplier, customer or other contract counterparty) is suffering distress and may be considering filing for insolvency? This alert provides several “do’s” and “don’ts” to consider before and after insolvency and advises taking a proactive approach to dealing with distressed customers.… Continue Reading
Our employment colleagues have produced this helpful alert setting out the headline points of what unlocking a UK company means for UK employers.… Continue Reading
It is not entirely clear how the UK Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme operates in line with current UK insolvency legislation, although it is clear that administrators can use the scheme and furlough employees. We have produced an alert that answers some of the key questions for administrators looking at whether employees should be furloughed or … Continue Reading
In this alert, our employment colleagues answer some of the key legal questions for UK employers as business start to consider how people might get back to work.… Continue Reading
Organisations need to understand how they can prepare ahead of the UK government preparing to bring the country out of lockdown, while not necessarily knowing the timescales or details of how restrictions will be lifted, or in what order. We have prepared a quick guide to help UK businesses start to think about some of … Continue Reading
Further to our blog about measures announced by the Government to protect commercial tenants from “aggressive” rent collection strategies, the Government subsequently confirmed that the restrictions will apply (unless extended) from: 27 April 2020 to 30 June 2020 for presentation of winding-up petitions; and 1 March 2020 to 30 June 2020 for statutory demands. However, … Continue Reading
On Monday 4th May at 12pm BST, we are hosting a webinar to outline some of the issues and challenges businesses should consider when preparing to come out of lockdown, how different sectors might be impacted and what steps businesses should be taking to enable them to manage risk and the financial health of the … Continue Reading
The coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and the measures introduced by the UK government to halt the spread of the contagion have inflicted an unprecedented shock to the UK labour market. Social distancing and lockdown measures have resulted in many non-essential stores having to close temporarily and/or stop trading to minimise gatherings and the spread of the virus. The … Continue Reading
Our recent blog discussed the decision in Re Carluccio’s Limited (in administration) [2020] EWHC 88D (Ch) where the Court considered whether administrators would “adopt” the employment contracts of employees they furloughed after the 14 day grace period. More recently, in the case of Debenhams Retail Limited the Court had to consider the position of administrators … Continue Reading
In a statement to the House of Commons on 27 April 2020, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer announced another loan scheme designed to support business to ‘bridge’ the economic disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Sitting alongside the CCFF, CLBILS and CBIL, the new scheme is targeted at the very smallest businesses that have … Continue Reading
Is there such a thing as an 80:20 rule? And if there is, is it there to be broken? Those questions surrounded the Government’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) last week. Frustration at the slow distribution of funding to SME UK via the scheme led to widespread calls for the Government to underwrite the … Continue Reading
At the end of March, the Government introduced measures providing a moratorium on evictions for commercial tenants for non-payment of rent until 30 June 2020. Although landlords were unable to evict tenants, there was no automatic rent holiday and tenants still remained liable to pay rent, which prompted many commercial discussions between landlords and tenants … Continue Reading
Boards are turning attention to life after lockdown. Businesses that ceased / slowed trading over the recent past are seeking the most efficient and effective paths to reactivation. Those paths will be navigated by reference to the amount and depth of scarring sustained by the business in lockdown and the shape of the new reality for … Continue Reading
This quick guide summarises the duties that directors of companies incorporated in England & Wales are subject to, and how those duties change when the company is insolvent or at risk of being insolvent. It also gives an overview of the personal risk to directors when the company is in financial difficulty and suggests some … Continue Reading
Today sees the formal launch of the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme, or CLBILS for short. This is the third scheme in the trinity of the Government’s direct funding schemes to UK business impacted by the pandemic. Targeted at businesses with an annual turnover in excess of £45m, its arrival is intended to plug … Continue Reading
The landscape relating to winding-up petitions has changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hundreds of petitions have been adjourned already, and the new Temporary Insolvency Practice Direction has now adjourned all hearings due to take place before 21 April across the country. It also sets out new procedures and timings for the listing and re-listing … Continue Reading
The High Court has delivered the first decision on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (the “Scheme”), in the context of the Carluccio’s administration. As we have previously discussed, despite further clarification from HMRC over recent days, there remain some unanswered questions regarding the detailed operation of the Scheme, given that the Scheme’s exact legal framework … Continue Reading
As the UK enters its fourth week in lockdown, the financial impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) has begun to materialise for many businesses. To support individuals and businesses moving forward and to assist them in producing contingency plans, the Office for National Statistics, one of UK’s largest independent producer of official statistics, has provided a … Continue Reading
COVID-19 is placing unprecedented strain on all businesses, and insolvency practitioner (“IP”) practices are no exception. Government-imposed restrictions on activities and movement will have a direct impact on the ability to carry on business as usual. There may be fewer employees available (through illness, self-isolation and furloughing), strain placed on remote working capabilities and a … Continue Reading
COVID-19 and Government-imposed restrictions are placing an unprecedented strain on everyone and businesses and individuals may be facing extreme financial pressure. COVID-19 is impacting businesses throughout the supply chain in most, if not all, sectors. This may mean that clients and debtors are unable to meet their obligations and there may need to be changes … Continue Reading
Throughout Europe governments have sought to support businesses in financial distress due to Covid-19 in three ways – by giving them money, by lending them money and by relieving them of their bills and financial commitments. European governments are doing a mix of all three. To provide a quick and easy guide to what support … Continue Reading
The past couple of weeks have seen the UK Government announce a volley of financial support packages for businesses. The two direct support programmes that have already launched, the Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF) and the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) have met with some criticism, notably that CBILS support is not reaching enough … Continue Reading
