Last year we saw two pivotal judgments handed down, Regis and New Look. These both concerned challenges brought by landlords, as to the manner in which landlord claims were treated in Regis’ and New Looks’, company voluntary arrangements (CVA). In the New Look case, landlords sought to attack the company’s CVA from all angles, with … Continue Reading
CVAs are a useful tool in the restructuring tool kit, and may prove extremely helpful to retailers or hospitality companies as a means of supporting those businesses as they emerge from the pandemic. However, with landlords often being the primary creditor who’s claims are compromised under the CVA proposal, this has also led to an … Continue Reading
On Monday, Zacaroli J handed down his eagerly anticipated judgment in Lazari Properties (2) Limited (and others) v New Look Retailers Limited (and others). The New Look landlords challenged the New Look CVA and raised a number of arguments which some believed could be the end of CVAs as we know them. In particular, the … Continue Reading
On Tuesday 22 September, we hosted our Resetting Retail: Response to COVID-19 event. Our panel of experts, comprising Matthew Lewis, Head of Retail; Richard Lim, Chief Executive, Retail Economics; Paula Laird, Financial Services partner; and John Alderton, Restructuring & Insolvency partner, explored the viability, sustainability and recovery of UK retail as we head towards 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
In this three part blog we highlight three recent court decisions concerning landlord rights and insolvency, which provide cautionary warnings and surprising twists. The questions we consider are: Does a company voluntary arrangement (“CVA”) permanently vary the terms of a lease? Can a landlord be forced to accept a surrender of a lease? What are the … Continue Reading
Retail remains a challenging market but there are a number of ways retailers can proactively manage their property portfolio costs to address those challenges. In our video partners Prew Lumley and John Alderton consider practical options for tenants when negotiating with landlords, including recent trends with Company Voluntary Arrangements. Thinking smart and being proactive may … Continue Reading
There has been an influx of company voluntary arrangements (“CVAs”) in recent times, as retailers fight to rescue their UK high street stores. Retail CVAs accounts for the highest proportion of CVAs at 19%. As more and more CVAs are approved, we consider some of the recent trends seen in the retail sector which showcase … 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
The retail sky is falling. At least that is how it appears from recent and unprecedented number of retailers filing for bankruptcy. From iconic stores such as Sears and Toys ‘R’ Us, to department stores such as Bon Ton, to mall stores including Brookstone, The Rockport Company, Nine West, among others. The reasons given for … Continue Reading
You may have noticed from the emails flooding into your inbox (even in this post-GDPR world) that this Friday 23 November is “Black Friday”. The event, originating in the US, takes place the day after Thanksgiving and is now synonymous with heavy discounting by retailers, especially those online. Less than a decade ago, this would … Continue Reading
The British press reported this week that packed UK beach resorts over the August bank holiday weekend enjoyed their biggest-spending tourism weekend of 2017. Some £2.5 billion is expected to have been spent as about 17 million Britons took a holiday or day trip. VisitEngland reported that around a million headed to Cornwall, with 450,000 … 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
Is UK Retail still in the doldrums? Christmas is a critical time for most retailers and can be the difference between life and death for many high street stores. With the economy’s recovery in its early stages and purse strings remaining tight, Christmas 2014 was never expected to be all tinsel and mistletoe. Christmas trading … Continue Reading
