Ahead of the Insolvency Rules Review expected this summer, the Insolvency Service have published a new statutory instrument (SI) that will come into force on 22 June. This seeks to tidy up a few of the “niggles” found in the Insolvency Rules 2016 (Rules) that have caused practitioners a headache, as well as making a … Continue Reading
When Waldorf Production UK Plc returned to court with its second restructuring plan in a year, the primary opposition it faced was from HMRC who voted against the plan. Mr Justice Green ultimately sanctioned the plan, cramming down the liabilities owed to HMRC but the judgment provides some helpful insight into the position taken by … Continue Reading
Have the doors to U.S. Bankruptcy courts finally swung open to cannabis companies? Perhaps, but still in only very limited circumstances involving a foreign debtor. Nonetheless, Judge Brendan Shannon’s recent order granting recognition of a Canadian insolvency proceeding [1] filed by a cannabis company is the first crack in the door that many bankruptcy professionals … Continue Reading
The Renters Rights Act 2025 (Act), which came into force on 1 May 2026 aims to give private tenants greater security and protection from eviction, in many respects aligning the position with business tenants who are in occupation under a protected business tenancy. For insolvency practitioners (IPs) appointed as administrators or liquidators of a business … Continue Reading
The Building Safety Act 2022 introduced sweeping changes to address this country’s building safety failures exposed by Grenfell. One of its most significant and arguably most revolutionary remedies introduced by the Act is the Building Liability Order, or BLO, designed to prevent relevant building safety liabilities being left behind in undercapitalised project companies while associated … Continue Reading
The U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware has issued a significant ruling in the cross‑border insolvency practice that reaffirms U.S. recognition of foreign restructuring plans containing third-party releases. Crédito Real S.A.B. DE C.V., SOFOM, E.N.R. (“Crédito Real”) was one of Mexico’s largest non-banking financial lending institutions. In 2021, Crédito Real experienced a liquidity … Continue Reading
There is something to be said for “assume the worst” when it comes to defects in administration appointments and extensions. The court has taken this approach in a few cases where, rather than trying to work out the intricacies and effect of a defect on an appointment or extension, it has assumed the worst (i.e … Continue Reading
It has been a while since we have had any cases challenging the fairness of a CVA, but in this recent Scottish decision where HMRC challenged the approval of Petrofac’s CVA on the basis of fairness, the court was required to consider HMRC’s contention that the CVA unfairly prejudiced its interests. In The Advocate General … Continue Reading
The powers of provisional liquidators are generally as set out in the order appointing them. In longer running provisional liquidations, this can lead to multiple trips to court by the provisional liquidators to extend or confirm powers. In Re Versilia Solutions Limited[1] the High Court considered the scope of provisional liquidators’ powers in circumstances where, … Continue Reading
The recent High Court decision in Maher and another v Investalet Ltd [2025] EWHC 3133 (Ch) serves as a critical reminder for insolvency practitioners about the importance of choosing the correct procedural route when seeking possession of property. It is an important case for insolvency practitioners dealing with intermediate landlords and unauthorised occupiers. In this … Continue Reading
When a business runs into financial difficulties and proposes a Company Voluntary Arrangement (“CVA”), landlords, insolvency practitioners and local authorities can disagree about who should pick up the bill for business rates on empty leasehold premises – the landlord, or the company in CVA?… Continue Reading
In a world where it is much more common to send someone a text, a WhatsApp message, email or other electronic communication, than type a letter or put pen to paper, the Court does find itself now and again considering how the digital ways of communicating interact with laws that were introduced way before the … Continue Reading
At the beginning of 2025 we shared our predictions on what we expected to see in the R&I market over the course of the year. How did we do? … Continue Reading
On December 1, 2025, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Honorable Denise Cote) entered an opinion and order that struck third-party releases and a related injunction in a confirmed Chapter 11 Plan (the “Plan”) for the In re Gol Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes S.A., et al. bankruptcy cases (Case No. … Continue Reading
For reasons explained in this blog, they did not in the case of Conway and others v Plass and others [2025] EWHC 2625 (Ch) but there could be situations where it might. In Conway and others v Plass and others, the High Court has provided guidance on when contract liabilities incurred by administrators will be … Continue Reading
As practitioners will know, when dealing with a sale of an insolvent business they will have to consider whether the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) applies. TUPE applies to transfers of businesses or undertakings (or parts of them). If there has been a relevant transfer under regulation 3 of TUPE, then … Continue Reading
New guidance is the latest in a move to iron out the practical wrinkles from Part 26 and 26A of the Companies Act 2006. On 18 September 2025, the Chancellor of the High Court published a revised Practice Statement regarding Schemes of Arrangement and Restructuring Plans (the “Practice Statement”). This follows a consultation on a … Continue Reading
The ability to cram down dissenting creditors in a Restructuring Plan (RP) is a helpful tool to ensure that a proposed restructuring is not derailed. But ultimately the power rests with the court in deciding whether to cram down an RP on dissenting creditors.… Continue Reading
In the High Court decision of Pagden v Ridgley [2025] EWHC 2674 (Ch), Mr Justice Foxton considered an appeal from a decision by ICC Judge Greenwood, who previously dismissed a challenge to the fees charged by an administrator for selling land subject to a fixed charge.… Continue Reading
The High Court has refused to use its discretion to sanction a restructuring plan proposed by Waldorf Production UK Plc (Waldorf or the Company) which entailed a cramdown of the company’s unsecured creditors pursuant to Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006. Background Waldorf (and its wider group) are engaged in the exploration and production … Continue Reading
HMRC has issued new guidance explaining its expectations for the proportionate and appropriate use of Notices of Intended Dividends (NOIDs) in an MVL in light of what it says are challenges created by practitioners issuing a NOID at the start of an MVL where doing so might be inappropriate. … Continue Reading
The Court of Appeal has handed down judgment in the Petrofac restructuring plan, overturning the sanctioning of the plans by the High Court. This is only the third time a restructuring plan has been considered by the Court of Appeal, in this blog we focus in on some of the key points of interest for … Continue Reading
What does it mean to be “bankrupt?” The Fourth Circuit recently held oral arguments to determine this question in Bestwall, LLC v. The Official Committee of Asbestos Claimants.[1] There, the Asbestos Claimants asserted that the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina (the “Bankruptcy Court”) lacks jurisdiction over Bestwall, because Bestwall … Continue Reading
In the recent appeal of Yerbury v Azets[1], the Court reiterated that an employer of an LPA receiver cannot be held vicariously liable for the actions of a receiver during a receivership and helpfully clarified the parameters of the receiver’s role by virtue of their appointment. In this blog, we delve further into the High … Continue Reading
