We look once again at the recent case of Re Active Wear Limited (in administration) (our other blog on another aspect of this case can be found here). As part of the changes introduced in light of Covid-19, the Temporary Insolvency Practice Direction (MIPD) was introduced, to enable statutory declarations on notices of intention to … Continue Reading
Following a long wait of 18 months, the Supreme Court has today confirmed that the appeal of the decision in BTI –v- Sequana is unanimously dismissed. The key question that many of us have been waiting for the answer to is: Does the creditor duty set out in s172(3) of the Companies Act 2006 exist … Continue Reading
The Supreme Court has refused permission for the case of Lock v Stanley to be appealed, meaning that the Court of Appeal’s approach to questions around the assignment by a liquidator of claims in the insolvent estate stands. Most notably the Court of Appeal confirmed that a liquidator is under no duty to offer defendants … Continue Reading
In the recent case of Re Active Wear Limited (in administration), the High Court ruled that the purported out-of-court administration appointment by a sole director of a company with unmodified model articles, was valid notwithstanding the earlier High Court decision in Re Fore Fitness Investments Holdings Ltd [2022] EWHC 191 (Ch). We have set out … Continue Reading
Brought in with the intention of protecting viable businesses from eviction or other enforcement measures in relation to rental arrears accrued as a result of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, the arbitration scheme (the “Scheme”) provided for under the Commercial Rents (Coronavirus) Act 2022 (the “Act”) has now ended. Its expiry sees the lifting of all remaining … Continue Reading
Following the UK government announcing that UK businesses will benefit from a reduction in energy costs to help combat rising energy costs, details of the proposed scheme have now been released. Under the scheme, a discount will be automatically applied to the bills of those businesses that are eligible to receive it, namely businesses that … Continue Reading
HMRC as the UK tax authority is often the largest creditor in any insolvency, but has not always been willing to engage in the process. This has caused viable restructuring proposals to fail for lack of support and this sometimes results in HMRC not achieving the best return. HMRC recognise that this stance has frustrated … Continue Reading
In PGD (in liquidation) Manolete Partners plc v Hope Mr Justice Zacaroli considered whether it was possible and/or appropriate to limit the quantum of relief granted in insolvency litigation to the amount required to pay the liquidation debts, costs and expenses where the claim had been assigned to a third-party litigation funder. Zacaroli J held … Continue Reading
Although there have not been many moratoriums since they were introduced, there have been a few, and according to data collected for this recent interim report, the costs of appointing a monitor and entering into a moratorium appear to be fairly reasonable. This will provide comfort to both corporates and practitioners who (understandably) might be … Continue Reading
The perceived costs of proposing a restructuring plan are seen to be the biggest inhibitors to using the process for SMEs. It is still a relatively new tool and insolvency practitioners, lawyers and the courts are still grappling with it, but as we have seen recently in Amigo Loans it can provide creative and innovative … Continue Reading
It is often the case, that insolvency claims are pursued against former directors of the insolvent company or persons connected to them. It is also often the case, that such claims are assigned to a litigation funding company given lack of funds in the insolvent estate to pursue them. This is what happened in Lock … Continue Reading
In the case of Caversham Finance Limited (in administration) [2022] EWHC 789, the court considered whether errors in a notice to creditors seeking consent to extend an administration made the extension invalid. This case is important as it shows the court’s approach to omission of prescribed information in notices to creditors. The information that was … Continue Reading
Smile Telecoms Holdings Limited (“Smile”), a Mauritian company, has recently had its second restructuring plan sanctioned by the High Court in England. The case contains some important markers for those involved in restructuring plans, particularly those plans which involve international elements or which seek to prevent out-of-the-money creditors from voting on the plan. Background Smile’s … Continue Reading
In our previous blogs, we discussed the announcement that Bulb Energy Ltd (“Bulb“) was placed into special administration and considered the reasons why special administration (as opposed to ordinary administration) was deemed necessary in Bulb’s case, as well as providing an overview of how special administration differs from ordinary administration (and the supplier of last … Continue Reading
Employment law and insolvency law can sometimes have a strained relationship, particularly when laws safeguarding employee rights find themselves in conflict with an insolvency practitioner’s duty to act in the interests of all the creditors (as opposed to any one group). But the case of Palmer vs Northern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court should be heeded by … Continue Reading
We discussed the announcement that Bulb Energy Ltd (“Bulb”) was due to be placed into special administration in our previous blog outlining how the rules for energy supply companies work, the supplier of last resort (“SoLR”) regime and what energy supply company special administration entails. In this blog we look at why it was necessary … Continue Reading
A restructuring plan may well be a very effective way of restructuring a foreign company. It has several advantages over a scheme of arrangement and with a relatively low entry threshold, the English court has already sanctioned at least one plan for a foreign company in the relatively short time that it has been available. … Continue Reading
As has been widely reported, the recent energy price volatility (coupled with the price cap limiting suppliers’ ability to pass increased costs on to consumers) has caused a number of energy supply company failures. Yesterday saw the announcement of the collapse of Bulb, one of the UK’s largest energy suppliers, with it being due to … Continue Reading
The UK Government has today indicated what will happen at the end of the month, when the temporary restrictions on winding up petitions are due to lift.… Continue Reading
Opening the door for the SME market, Sir Alistair Norris has sanctioned the first ever restructuring plan for a “mid-market” company. The plan sanctioned in Amicus Finance PLC (in administration) is also the first restructuring plan proposed by insolvency practitioners and the first to cram down a secured creditor. The sanction judgment is short, but … Continue Reading
The recent case of Re A Company [2021] EWHC 2289 (Ch) outlines how the coronavirus test for winding up petitions will be applied by the Courts. Taking a similar approach, to the cases of Newman v Templar Corp Ltd [2020] EWHC 3740 (Ch) and Re PGH Investments Ltd v Ewing [2021] EWHC 533 (Ch), both … Continue Reading
In this third alert, we consider the findings in the New Look and Regis CVA challenge cases from the point of view of valuing landlord claims, counting the votes of unimpaired creditors and disclosure. Both of these challenges cases alleged that there has been non-disclosure, and therefore a material irregularity, and challenged the way that the landlords’ claims … Continue Reading
Following the pivotal decisions in the New Look and Regis CVA challenge cases, where do the findings in those cases leave retailers, landlords and insolvency practitioners? In a series of alerts we will consider the key takeaways for landlords, the position of retailers and the impact of the findings for insolvency practitioners. Albeit that the … Continue Reading
