Administrators are statutorily entitled to require a receiver to vacate office (paragraph 41 Schedule B1 Insolvency Act 1986 (“Schedule B1”)). In Promontoria (Chestnut) Ltd v Craig and another [2017] EWHC 2405 (Ch) they did just that, taking steps to remove existing receivers not long after their appointment, claiming the action to be in the interests … Continue Reading
An effective and well-equipped insolvency and restructuring regime gives confidence to investors and financiers, enabling credit to flow through to businesses and boost economic activity, growth and innovation. In 1999, following the Asian financial crisis, the World Bank carried out a review of the international regimes to establish a set of key principles for effective … Continue Reading
VE Vegas Investors IV LLC and others vs Shinners and others [2018] EWHC 186 Ch Background The applicants were creditors of VE Interactive Limited (In administration) (“VE”). VE encountered financial difficulties and its directors sought insolvency advice from insolvency practitioners at Smith and Williamson (“S&W”) and appointed them to advise on and effect a pre-pack … Continue Reading
There was a magical place that’s now in administration. It’s called ‘Toys R Us’, Toys R Us’, Toys R Us’. This week has seen another two major retail casualties with the aforementioned much-loved toy shop and well-known electrical retailer Maplin going into administration within minutes of each other. As predicted in one of our recent … Continue Reading
Jamie Oliver’s two flagship restaurants have hit the headlines this week, with the upmarket steak restaurant Barbecoa in London’s Piccadilly closing. This comes shortly after last month’s announcement that Jamie’s Italian was closing 12 of its 37 restaurants, following the 6 sites that closed in January 2017. The Guardian reported that the number of UK … Continue Reading
A recent ruling of the German Federal Civil Court (Bundesgerichtshof (“BGH”)) is a reminder of the risks which shareholders of a German company can face in an insolvency of their German subsidiary. Under the German Insolvency Code (“InsO”), claims for repayment of a loan granted by a shareholder who holds more than 10% of the … Continue Reading
A recent decision of the High Court (Goel and another v Grant and another [2017] EWHC 2688 (Ch)) has provided a useful reminder that care must be taken when administrators enter into pre-contract negotiations and the risk of inadvertently entering into a binding contract before terms are finalised. It also deals with the risks of disposing … Continue Reading
“There’s a magical place, we’re on our way there, with toys in their millions, all under one roof – it’s called… Toys R Us!” The lyrics resonate with millions worldwide. The advert is as iconic as Coca Cola’s “Holidays Are Coming” commercial or the Sainsbury’s “Christmas is for sharing” World War 1 cinematic ad. Sadly, … Continue Reading
Introduction With Christmas fast approaching and black Friday/Cyber Monday having passed, retailers will be hoping for a big spike in sales this December to add some sparkle to another challenging year. The uncertain political environment both domestic and abroad has had a visible impact on consumer confidence and, coupled with rising prices and a weak pound, is adding to … Continue Reading
Following on from our previous blog A Fight Over the Runway – Monarch Administrators Lose High Court Battle, the latest development in the saga is the recent Court of Appeal decision in Monarch Airlines Ltd v Airport Coordination Ltd [2017] EWCA Civ 1892. Overturning the decision of the High Court, the Court of Appeal held that Monarch … Continue Reading
An out-of-hours office appointment of an administrator, although not unusual, is not a regular occurrence in the world of insolvency. It is however, exactly what happened at 4am on Monday 2 October, as Britain’s longest surviving airline brand ‘Monarch’ entered administration. The collapse of the airline comes as a result of mounting cost pressures in … Continue Reading
Although figures revealed last year indicated that the number of pub closures had fallen, more recent data suggests that the restaurant sector is now at greater risk of insolvency due to Brexit. This is due to rising costs which has resulted in the stagnation of disposable income (accountants Moore Stephens, for example, warned of this … Continue Reading
Paul Muscutt and Cathryn Williams, of the Squire Patton Boggs Restructuring & Insolvency team in London, analyse the current restructuring market with Blair Nimmo, UK Head of Restructuring, KPMG.… Continue Reading
The recent Court of Appeal case of JCAM Commercial Real Estate Property XV Limited v. Davis Haulage Limited [2017] EWCA Civ 267 has set out the importance of there being a settled intention to enter administration and indicated that this is a pre-requisite to an out of court appointment being validly made. The judge at first … Continue Reading
On 6 April 2017, the new Insolvency Rules come into force which will affect creditors’ rights in most insolvency procedures. The changes are designed to ensure insolvency processes are as efficient and streamlined as possible in order to maximise returns to creditors by reducing costs whilst retaining safeguards to avoid abuse or injustice. Whether you are … Continue Reading
The recent Chancery Division judgment in Re Gracio Property Company Limited [2017] B.C.C 15 (“Gracio”) saw the court make an order for a compulsory liquidation without any winding-up petition having been issued.… Continue Reading
The recent case of Thomas & another v Frogmore Real Estate Partners & others [2017] EWHC 25 (Ch) provides useful guidance for anyone analyzing the centre of main interests (“COMI”) of a company not registered in the UK or other EEA state for the purposes of assessing whether or not insolvency proceedings relating to the … Continue Reading
The decorations are down, the last of the Quality Street has been consumed and the New Year’s resolutions are a distant (and perhaps failed) memory…….suddenly the dreary weather leads to thoughts of sunshine and distant shores. Travel companies have dubbed the first Saturday in January ‘Sunshine Saturday’ as many holidaymakers plot their escape during the … Continue Reading
An employment tribunal has recently confirmed that employees who have been unfairly dismissed from an insolvent employer can bring an action against a connected successor company. The tribunal held that there was a ‘commonality of ownership’ between the original and successor companies and that it was correct as a matter of public policy that employees should be able … Continue Reading
In the recent case of Gillan v HEC Enterprises Ltd (in administration) and Ors [2016] EWHC 3179 (Ch), the High Court considered (1) in what circumstances administrators can recover costs and expenses incurred in dealing with trust property and (2) how the administrators’ costs in applying for a Berkeley Applegate order and other litigation were to be dealt with.… Continue Reading
The Housing and Planning Act 2016 (the “Act”) introduces special administration procedures for social housing associations which aim to protect the level of social housing in the UK. The new housing administration orders (“HAOs”) create an additional objective for insolvency practitioners to try to keep social housing in the regulated housing sector to maintain levels of … Continue Reading
In the case of Re BW Estates Ltd the High Court considered the validity of a directors’ out of court appointment in circumstances where there was technically an inquorate directors’ board meeting. It was held that the appointment was not invalid despite only one director being present at the meeting convened to put the company into administration in … Continue Reading
Since its inception in 2005, the PPF has been a welcome safety net for employees whose company pension scheme is in deficit and the sponsoring employer is on the verge of insolvency. The PPF’s major challenge has been preventing employers from deliberately engineering or recklessly creating such deficits in the pension scheme (to the benefit … Continue Reading
When we review security for financiers, we always consider what enhancements they might implement to strengthen their security net. As part of this approach, we obtain a proprietor search from the Land Registry to see if there is any uncharged property in the name of the borrower. Often, any property identified is a short to … Continue Reading
