Did you know that when a liquidator makes a court application, it is important to identify the appropriate applicant, not only as a procedural matter, but also from a costs perspective?

All good where the liquidator succeeds in the court application

Did you know... that the court may, in special circumstances, exercise its discretion to appoint pre-existing receivers as a company’s provisional liquidators.

In the recent decision ofRe K Vision International Investment (Hong Kong) Limited, the Honourable Mr. Justice Barma confirmed that, where the circumstances require it, the court will exercise its discretion to appoint pre-existing receivers of a company’s assets as that company’s provisional liquidators provided that potential conflicts of interest are identified and appropriately addressed.

Summary

As many will know, a failure to “...do all that is reasonable for the purpose of bringing the statutory demand to the debtor’s attention...” may result in an annulment of a bankruptcy order. But how is this requirement of Rule 46 of the Bankruptcy Rules met?

We have previously reported that the Official Receiver retains its entitlement to ad valorem fees on the conversion of a compulsory liquidation  to a creditors’ voluntary winding-up (CVL).

Did you know...that the Official Receiver retains its right to ad valorem fees (relating to pre-conversion realisations) pursuant to the Companies (Fees and Percentages) Order (Cap 32C) (“Fees Order”) on conversion of a compulsory liquidation to a creditors’ voluntary winding-up.

Generally with a winding-up petition, if the petitioner is successful in obtaining a winding-up order, the petitioner will have its costs of the  proceedings. If, on the other hand, the petition is dismissed, then the petitioner has been  unsuccessful and it should pay the costs of the proceedings. We explore the Companies Court’s  treatment of costs in three recent decisions below.

From what Assets should a Petitioner have its Costs?

Did you know...that in urgent circumstances, the court may treat the presentation of a winding-up petition to the judge hearing the application for the appointment of provisional liquidators as being sufficient without the petition in fact having been presented at the office of the court registrar.

Under Hong Kong law, the courts’ jurisdiction is ordinarily territorial in nature. A plaintiff or applicant has to obtain permission (“leave”) of the court before it can validly serve a writ or other document initiating a legal action on a defendant or respondent located outside Hong Kong. For actions begun by writ, the procedures and criteria for applications for leave in this respect are set out under Order 11 of the Rules of the High Court (“RHC”).

The insolvency proceedings of the Lehman Brothers' group of companies worldwide ("Group") are among the most complicated ones we have seen. A significant factor contributing to the complexity is that many Group entities hold segregated assets (principally securities and funds) for their clients, which may be individuals or entities within or outside the Group.