EUROPEAN UPDATE: (citation: David L. Barrack, Jami Mills Vibbert, Johnathan C. Bolton; “English High Court Recognizes, Enforces U.S. Court Judgments in Adversary Proceedings” XXIX ABI Journal 9; 30-31, 78; November 2010) - David L. Barrack, Jami Mills Vibbert, Johnathan C. Bolton

Whether a company is facing solvency problems, management upheaval or other serious problems attracting attention, ensuring sensible communication tactics are not thwarted by its own management and processes is often the hardest part of mounting a successful defence of its reputation. The tactics for stopping a crisis becoming a PR disaster are well known and have been extensively documented, so why do wellresourced companies with lots of bright people (ranging right up to giants like Toyota and General Motors) sometimes make such a disaster of it?

The Court of Appeal today ruled in favour of the senior lenders in the ongoing restructuring of the European Directories Group. Overturning the earlier decision of the High Court, the Court of Appeal found that the Security Trustee was authorised to release guarantee liabilities and security as part of a senior lender proposed restructuring plan. Senior lenders will be reassured by a judgment which sought to give effect to the commercial rationale behind intercreditor arrangements.

The UK Supreme Court (UKSC - pictured) has handed down its long anticipated judgment in Radmacher (formerly Granatino) (Respondent) v. Granatino (Appellant) [2010] UKSC 42. The case concerns the validity of pre-nuptial marriage agreements in English law.

The Ministry of Justice's consultation on its draft Bribery Act guidance includes principles of good compliance and clarifications on bribes. The ministry has also released five illustrative examples on key danger areas, such as hospitality.

Workers at Breckland Council in Norfolk may soon have to clock in and out using flexi-time cards each time they go for a cigarette break. Defending the policy, the Council explained that it was suggested following staff consultation and is felt necessary in order to address issues of unfairness amongst smokers and non-smokers. If approved, the new rules will apply from 1 November 2010. Nottingham City Council dropped a similar policy after a trial period and it remains to be seen whether this is a suitable solution to issues of perceived unfairness between smokers and non-smokers at work.

The recently enacted UK Bribery Act 2010 (“Bribery Act”), which will become fully effective and enforceable in Spring 2011, constitutes a sweeping revision and expansion of the United Kingdom's anticorruption legislation. It creates broad prohibitions on both public sector and commercial bribery for essentially any company or person with a connection to the United Kingdom. The jurisdictional reach of the Bribery Act is otentially profound and generates the need for any company with operations in the UK to closely valuate its anti-corruption compliance policies and procedures.

Louise Verrill and Sonya Van de Graaff overview some of the imaginative uses of current insolvency and Company legislation since the insolvency of Lehman Brothers

This call for evidence invites people to have a say on how the existing consumer credit and personal insolvency regimes might be improved and seeks views on a number of Coalition commitments, including: * tackling unfair bank charges; * introducing a seven-day cooling off period for store cards; * introducing a power for a regulator to cap interest rates on credit and store cards; and * requiring credit card providers to make electronic statements available to enable consumers to judge whether an alternative credit card would provide better value for money.

A recent New South Wales Court of Appeal decision gives further guidance as to whether a cap on an administrator's remuneration precludes them from seeking a review under section 449E(2) of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). Partner Michael Quinlan and Lawyer Clementine Allan report. http://www.aar.com.au/pubs/insol/foinsol12oct10.htm?email=true