Category: insolvency

Former BHS owner Chappell faces boardroom ban but Sir Philip Green escapes sanction over collapse – Daily Telegraph

Posted March 28th, 2018 in company directors, financial regulation, insolvency, news, pensions, sanctions by tracey

‘Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell will be banned from serving as company director for up to 15 years over his role in the the high street chain’s collapse, while its previous owner Sir Philip Green will escape any sanction. The Insolvency Service said that the retail mogul Sir Philip, who sold BHS to thrice bankrupt Mr Chappell little over a year before its demise for £1, will not face further action.’

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Daily Telegraph, 27th March 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Supreme Court: use of corporate vehicles did not avoid limitation exception – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 23rd, 2018 in company directors, fiduciary duty, insolvency, limitations, news, Supreme Court, third parties, trusts by tracey

‘Company directors were said to be responsible for assets despite their use of corporate vehicles, the Supreme Court has ruled (12-page / 157KB PDF). The ruling means that a six year limitation period stopping liquidators taking legal action against the directors does not apply. This case will impact future misfeasance actions. Director and officer indemnity insurers should take note of this decision as it confirms that the English courts are unwilling to accept the six-year limitation defence for actions against directors following the disposal of company assets in breach of fiduciary duty for economic gain.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 23rd March 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

BHS to repay rental discounts says High Court – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 15th, 2018 in agreements, company law, insolvency, news, rent by tracey

‘The High Court has said that BHS cannot challenge the terms of its own company voluntary arrangement (CVA) as unenforceable contractual penalties. The case provides guidance as to how CVAs operate post termination and the payment of rent as an expense of a company’s administration in priority to other debts.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 14th March 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Harbour View, contractor insolvency and the importance of a guarantee expiry date – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted February 21st, 2018 in construction industry, guarantees, insolvency, news, time limits by tracey

‘One of the interesting features of the recent decision of Coulson J in Ziggurat (Claremont Place) LLP v HCC International Insurance Company Plc is the effect on a guarantee of a contractor becoming insolvent many years after a construction project has been completed. In Ziggurat, the amended ABI model form of guarantee bond had not yet expired. This allowed the employer to make a claim under the guarantee arising out of the contractor’s insolvency, notwithstanding the fact that the contractor’s employment had already been terminated and the project had achieved practical completion.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 21st February 2018

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

High Court says it cannot permanently stay enforcement of English law debt obligations in favour of a foreign insolvency proceeding – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 6th, 2018 in banking, debts, enforcement, foreign jurisdictions, insolvency, news by tracey

‘The High Court has said that it could not impose a permanent moratorium against creditor action in England and Wales where the foreign restructuring of an Azerbijan bank had been recognised as a foreign main proceeding under the Cross-Border Insolvency Regulations.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 5th February 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Sub-contractor insolvency – what lengths would you go to? – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted January 24th, 2018 in construction industry, contracts, insolvency, news by tracey

‘Over the past few months, a number of large construction companies have been making headlines for facing severe financial difficulties. However, sub-contractor insolvency can also cause considerable problems for other parties on construction projects who have contractual relations with that party.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 24th January 2018

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Ziggurat: the crumbling edifice of surety bonds – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted January 19th, 2018 in construction industry, contracts, insolvency, news, surety by tracey

‘I read the decision in Ziggurat with some incredulity. I hadn’t intended to trespass on Karen Spencer’s territory, and overall I’d agree with her conclusion that the amendments made to the ABI form seem to have confused rather than clarified matters. I’d also agree with Roddy Cormack’s comment that more radical surgery is needed if the employer wishes to secure earlier payment following the contractor’s insolvency. But I did want to offer some thoughts on what the decision tells us about wider issues in the surety bonding market.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 17th January 2018

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

BT faces £120m Phones 4u claim after High Court defeat – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 18th, 2018 in contracts, insolvency, news, private equity, telecommunications by tracey

‘Phones 4u has dealt a blow to Britain’s biggest mobile operator from beyond the grave, winning a key battle in a long campaign by its administrators to extract £120m in unpaid commission from EE.’

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Daily Telegraph, 17th January 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Statutory interest paid by a company in administration must have tax deducted, says Court of Appeal – OUT-LAW.com

Posted January 8th, 2018 in appeals, banking, corporation tax, insolvency, interest, news, taxation by sally

‘Statutory interest paid by a company in administration on a surplus is ‘yearly interest’ for UK tax purposes and must therefore be paid after deduction of basic rate tax, the Court of Appeal has decided, overturning a previous decision of the High Court.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 5th January 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Security for costs: ATE policies – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted November 22nd, 2017 in civil procedure rules, costs, insolvency, insurance, judgments, news by sally

‘In a commendable judgment dated 24 October 2016 in Premier Motorauctions v Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Snowden J injected a much needed dose of realism into an issue which had, for too long, suffered from a regrettable degree of uncertainty, namely security for costs applications against parties with after the event (ATE) insurance cover. Cases this year suggest that this is now a go-to authority for applications of this sort.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 16th November 2017

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Autumn Newsletter – Falcon Chambers

Posted November 22nd, 2017 in adverse possession, barristers, boundaries, contracts, duty of care, easements, estoppel, freedom of expression, housing, injunctions, insolvency, land registration, landlord & tenant, leases, legal services, misrepresentation, negligence, news, planning, restraint orders, restrictive covenants, rights of way, statutory interpretation, third parties, tribunals by sally

– Prescriptive easements – a glass half-full: out with the negative; in with the positive 10

– Keeping the Title Clean: Unwanted Notices and Restrictions 12

– Estoppel in Pre-Contractual Negotiations 15

– The Curse of the Freebie 17

– Voidable and no Mistake 20

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Falcon Chambers, November 2017

Source: www.falcon-chambers.com

Treat Insolvency Rules as ‘a complete code’ for payment of statutory interest, rules Court of Appeal – OUT-LAW.com

Posted November 13th, 2017 in administrators, appeals, codes of practice, debts, insolvency, interest, judgments, news, regulations, statutory interpretation by tracey

‘The Court of Appeal has determined the extent of creditors’ entitlements to statutory interest on their debts and the correct approach for calculating their entitlement. It has ruled on the entitlement of representative creditors of Lehman Brothers International (Europe) (LBIE) to the surplus funds and on the calculation of the statutory interest due to them.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 10th November 2017

Source: www.out-law.com

The Jackson effect: One costs firm set to close as another leaves debt behind in administrator sale – Litigation Futures

Posted October 30th, 2017 in costs, debts, insolvency, law firms, legal services, news by sally

‘The harsh impact of the Jackson reforms on the costs world is on display today as we reveal that one costs business is closing down, while it has emerged that another has been reborn after the directors bought the assets, files and outstanding WIP from its joint administrators.’

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Litigation Futures, 30th October 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Appeal judges reject law firm’s claim for fees under insolvency CFA – Litigation Futures

Posted August 9th, 2017 in appeals, costs, estoppel, insolvency, news, solicitors by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has rejected a law firm’s claim to its legal fees in a battle with a liquidator over a conditional fee agreement (CFA).’

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Litigation Futures, 8th August 2017

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Dozens of leading charities face insolvency after Government demands back pay for night-time carers – The Independent

Posted July 20th, 2017 in carers, charities, disabled persons, insolvency, learning difficulties, news, remuneration, social services by tracey

‘Dozens of leading charities could face insolvency within weeks after the Government ruled they must pay millions of pounds in back payments to overnight carers.’

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The Independent, 19th July 2017

Source: www.independent.co.uk

The Insolvency Rules 2016: an assault on red tape? – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted July 5th, 2017 in appeals, documents, insolvency, judges, jurisdiction, news, registrars, regulations, statute law revision by sally

‘The long-awaited overhaul of the Insolvency Rules 1986 (IR 1986) is now complete, and the Insolvency Rules 2016 (IR 2016) came into force on 6 April 2017. The journey to this point has not been without its difficulties and it would be fair to say that many had anticipated them being in force some time earlier. Perhaps unusually for provisions so overtly procedural in their nature, IR 2016 have also proved to be somewhat controversial.

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Hardwicke Chambers, 14th June 2017

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

In re Nortel Networks UK Ltd and related companies (No 2) – WLR Daily

Posted June 21st, 2017 in administrators, courts, expenses, insolvency, jurisdiction, law reports by sally

In re Nortel Networks UK Ltd and related companies (No 2) [2017] EWHC 1429 (Ch)

‘The applicants, the administrators of companies in the same group, were aware of a number of potential claims, which might if established, qualify as administration expenses (“expense claims”), and thereby rank for payment in priority to the claims of unsecured creditors. Neither the Insolvency Act 1986, nor the Insolvency Rules 1986, nor the Insolvency Rules 2016 provided any express mechanism under which an administrator could require expense claims to be asserted by a specific date, or enable him to refuse to deal with claims asserted after that date in the context of a distribution to unsecured creditors. In the absence of any applicable statutory scheme, the administrators applied to the High Court for directions under paragraph 63 of Schedule B1 to the 1986 Act to implement a scheme informing potential claimants that any expense claims which had not yet been made had to be notified to the administrators on a prescribed form on or before a specified date.’

WLR Daily, 16th June 2017

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Construction v Insolvency: Adjudicators’ decisions will be enforced, despite a statutory moratorium – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted May 16th, 2017 in arbitration, construction industry, enforcement, insolvency, news by sally

‘The Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (as amended)(“the Construction Act”) implies terms concerning payment and the right to adjudicate in construction contracts. Despite this Act being primarily concerned with construction contract issues, insolvency practitioners are becoming increasingly familiar with its provisions because of the rights to payment the Act creates. These rights are increasingly being used as a basis to commence insolvency proceedings.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 24th April 2017

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Challenges Arising from Brexit – Henderson Chambers

Posted April 6th, 2017 in brexit, company law, competition, consumer protection, EC law, insolvency, intellectual property, news, public procurement, treaties by sally

‘In the light of Brexit, uncertain times lie ahead! How can small businesses cope with the challenges which the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union will necessarily entail and with the uncertainty that will persist so long as no concluded agreement(s) has/have been struck between the British Government and its EU counterparts.’

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Henderson Chambers, 5th April 2017

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Speech by The Chancellor of the High Court: A Look at the Future for Insolvency and Business Litigation in London – Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Posted November 15th, 2016 in courts, insolvency, judges, judiciary, speeches by tracey

‘I am keen to speak tonight about the important work of the Rolls Building and the real value of the international reputation of our law and our judges in the post-Brexit world.’

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Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, 10th November 2016

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk