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
The demise of high street retail and the insolvency of household names, including Woolworths, BHS, and more recently Debenhams and Monsoon has been a real headache for property owners. The moratorium created by administration ties the hands of landlords, preventing them from forfeiting leases without first having obtained the consent of the administrator or the … Continue Reading
When dealing with a debtor or a tenant that has fallen behind with its payment obligations, one of the most cost effective ways of a creditor/landlord reducing its exposure against that entity will be to take advantage of a “self-help” remedy, such as taking possession of the entity’s assets and selling them in repayment of … Continue Reading
Summary The High Court has issued a judgment dismissing the entirety of the Claimants’ claim in a long-running dispute commenced by a pair of property developers against a Judicial Factor to the estate of a Scottish businessman (the “Deceased”). Squire Patton Boggs represented the successful Defendant, who was awarded the majority of his costs on the … Continue Reading
Estate agents’ fees (which often feel excessive on top of all the other costs of moving house) have been largely accepted as a normal cost of selling your house. Or at least they used to be. However this may not be the case anymore with property owners increasingly using online agents that offer low-cost fixed … Continue Reading
Cathryn Williams and Paul Muscutt, partners in the Squire Patton Boggs Restructuring & Insolvency team in London, interview Ian Fletcher, Director of Policy (Real Estate) of the BPF (the trade association for UK residential and commercial real estate companies) to get the BPF’s views on the recent spate of CVAs seeking to reduce/compromise lease liabilities.… Continue Reading
Carpetright, the UK flooring company, has announced that it is considering a Company Voluntary Arrangement with the aim of “rationalising the company’s property portfolio in order to improve the long-term prospects of the business”. This is expected to enable the business to close unprofitable shops and reduce their rent bill. With 409 shops across the … Continue Reading
Do a lessee’s possessory interests in real property survive a “free and clear” sale of the property under section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code? In a recent decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals said “no,” holding that section 365(h) did not protect the interest of the lessee in the context of a section 363 … Continue Reading
Spain’s Civil Code provides that when the sale proceeds of a mortgaged property do not cover all the debt contracted with the bank, the debt continues to subsist and the bank may go against any other asset belonging to the customer, with the exception of properties that are untouchable, for the shortfall. However, a Court in Barcelona has … 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
Managing residential tenanted property can be a challenge for receivers. In many cases, it is necessary for them to act as “accidental landlords” to maximise the potential realisations to the appointing lender. These lenders have lent money to companies or individuals who invest in residential blocks and collect rents from their tenants. When the borrowers default, … Continue Reading
The Slovak personal insolvency regime will change on March 1, 2017. The new system is aimed at opening personal insolvency to a wider debtor audience, while keeping it simple and cost effective. Today, only those individuals with assets over EUR 1,659.70 could seek a declaration of bankruptcy. Otherwise, the proceedings would be stopped and the doors … 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
Unfortunately that is not the question for many young (and even not so young) aspiring UK homeowners who are struggling to get their feet on the property ladder and buy their own home in the current market. It seems that the UK as a nation is obsessed with home ownership and that first rung on … Continue Reading
A ruling by the Supreme Court in Spain says Spanish banks that held deposits for property that was never built are to be held to account. Around 100,000 people in the UK are thought to have paid big sums towards such properties in Spain but these were lost when several developers went bust in the wake … Continue Reading
The health and social care sector is currently facing its most significant challenge since the Southern Cross care-homes collapse in 2011. A financial crisis is on the horizon, resulting from the unwelcome trifecta of rising staff costs, significant funding cuts and a steadily increasing regulatory burden. In the five years since the Southern Cross collapse … Continue Reading
Promociones Habitat SA, the Spanish residential homebuilder, has completed a €1.45 billion restructuring which was the first refinancing of an existing composition agreement to use the provisions in a debt/equity swap within Spain’s new company rescue laws. In 2008 Promociones Habitat SA (Habitat)applied for voluntary bankruptcy with accumulated liabilities of 2,840 million euros. Two years later, … Continue Reading
The BHS CVA is now in effect following a successful ‘yes’ vote on 23 March 2016 when 95% of creditors voted in favour of the proposals. The BHS CVA is the latest in a long line of CVAs that have been successfully used to reduce the burden of onerous lease arrangements across large retail portfolios following … Continue Reading
As the next quarterly rental payment fast approaches, some companies – particularly in the retail sector where sales in the run up to Christmas haven’t been what they’d hoped – may be considering exiting an onerous, costly lease. That will involve reviewing the break clauses in the lease and weighing up the costs of exercising … Continue Reading
On 14 September 2015, judgment was handed down in the case of Re SSRL Realisations Limited (In Administration), in which a landlord was granted permission to forfeit a lease by peaceable re-entry. The case will be of interest to insolvency practitioners and landlords alike – but for very different reasons. The facts of this case … Continue Reading
On Friday 11 September in the High Court in London, Mr E Murray (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge), handed down a reserved judgment: Clutterbuck & Paton v William Cleghorn (as Judicial Factor to the Estate of Elliot Nichol Deceased), in which the entirety of the Claimants’ £97.5m claim was struck out as an … Continue Reading
In the recent case of Wilson (as liquidator of 375 Live Ltd) v SMC Properties Limited, the English High Court reviewed the policy behind section 127 Insolvency Act 1986 (“the Act”) and the underlying principles that apply to validation order applications. The Court considered the interaction between the requirement of good faith and the role … Continue Reading
The Royal Decree-Law 1/2015 dated February 27, 2015 (the “RDL”) seeks to implement urgent measures to, among other things, reduce individual debtors’ financial burden. The RDL was designed to give a second chance to an individual debtor and introduced a mechanism according to which such debtor may have his debts discharged if (i) he acts in good faith … Continue Reading
Following on from our recent post ‘UK Retail – Another Dressing Down?’ commenting on the trends seen over Christmas 2014, we now take a look at the approaching Easter weekend. A 4 day weekend, a recovering housing market and only a few weather warnings issued….. surely this can only mean one thing-DIY and all the … Continue Reading
