In Akers (as a joint foreign representative of Saad Investments Company Ltd) (in official liquidation) (a company registered in the Cayman Islands) v DCT [2014]FCAFC 57 the Federal Court of Australia recently upheld an earlier landmarkdecision concerning the proper construction and interpretation of the Model Lawon Cross Border Insolvency on the United Nations Commission on InternationalTrade Law, made part of Aust

ASIC has just published its annual overview of corporate insolvencies based on statutory reports lodged by external administrators for the 2013-14 financial year.

In the matter ofMustang Marine Australia Services Pty Ltd [2014] NSWSC 1074, Brereton J of the New South Wales Supreme Court held that there is no principle that before instituting proceedings a liquidator must be satisfied of the material facts that constitute its cause of action, and that absent such satisfaction the proceedings are an abuse of process. As long as proceedings are instituted for bona fide relief claimed and are not doomed then there is no abuse of process.

FACTS

On 4 September 2014, the Government introduced the Fair Entitlements Guarantee Amendment Bill 2014 to the House of Representatives (Bill).  The Bill is intended to amend the Fair Entitlements Guarantee Act 2012 (Cth) so as to limit the entitlements payable by the Government to those employees made redundant due to the liquidation or bankruptcy of their employer. 

In Sharpe v WH Bailey & Sons Pty Ltd [2014] FCA 921, Justice Gleeson found that the Farm Debt Mediation Act 1994 (NSW) (FDM Act) did not operate to prevent an individual from pursuing their rights under the Bankruptcy Act1966 (Cth), even though those rights may have been related to a farm mortgage.  In doing so, Justice Gleeson confirmed that the Bankruptcy Act1966 (Cth) will have priority over the FDM Act where the requirements of section 5 of the FDM Act are met.

FACTS

In the decision of Saker, in the matter of Great Southern Limited[2014] FCA 771, the Federal Court of Australia held that statutory obligations, not trust obligations, require receivers and liquidators to hold and apply funds for the benefit of employees pursuant to s 561 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).

FACTS

Introduction

The approach of the courts to public examinations conducted by liquidators has in recent times arguably tended towards granting increasing liberty to liquidators in the scope of their examinations.

In Stewart v Atco Controls Pty Ltd (In Liquidation) [2014] HCA 15, the High Court of Australia recently delivered a decision which has confirmed the priority of a Liquidator’s lien over the interests of a secured creditor.

The facts

In Australian Building Systems Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation [2014] FCA 116, the Federal Court held that liquidators do not have an obligation to retain an amount for the payment of tax of a portion of the proceeds from the sale of property owned by the company before liquidation when no tax assessment has been issued. However, Justice Logan made clear that a prudent liquidator would be entitiled to retain the gain until an advice or assessment from the Commissioner, was issued.

Background