Europe has struggled mightily during the last several years to triage a long series of critical blows to the economies of the 28 countries that comprise the European Union, as well as the collective viability of eurozone economies. Here we provide a snapshot of some recent developments regarding insolvency, restructuring, and related issues in the EU.
HR Colsultancy
JOBS ACT - Fixed term employment contract: potential fines for those companies with 20% or more of their employees on fixed term contracts
Current proposed amendments by the Jobs Act include (i) replacing the fine for conversion of fixed term contracts exceeding the 20% limit into open-ended contracts with a fine to be paid to the employee and (ii) the clarification of the reintroduction of basic training for apprentices.
Introduction
The ongoing financial crisis has not left France untouched. The number of company insolvencies rose considerably in 2013: while judicial rehabilitation proceedings remained stable, liquidation proceedings increased by 4% from 2012, and “safeguard” proceedings (a procedure inspired by “Chapter 11” proceedings in the United States) increased by 9%. Pre-insolvency proceedings such as judicially-supervised conciliation and ad hoc mediation reached an all-time high, 24% over 2012.
Order no. 2014-326 dated 12 March 2014, applicable as of 1 July 2014, amends the rules on the prevention of business difficulties and on insolvency. The key highlights of the reform include:
- power to issue an alert by the President of the Civil Court
New §L. 611-2-1 of the Commercial Code permits the President of the Civil Court (Tribunal de grande instance) to use, as can the President of the Commercial Court (Tribunal de commerce), the alert mechanism.
Given the unfortunate reputation of French courts for awarding substantial damages to employees for unfair terminations, US corporations with operations in France are anxious to limit their financial and legal exposure in case of litigation initiated by their French workforce. How to achieve this efficiently is a far from rhetorical question as French employees frequently pull in the US parent company as a named defendant. The recent decision of the French Supreme Court [Cass. Soc.
The end of a legal saga
This newsletter refers to Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy news of November 2014.
H.A.M.A.C: adoption de la première sauvegarde accélérée
Le 19 septembre 2014, le tribunal de commerce de Nanterre a ouvert la toute première procédure de sauvegarde accélérée au bénéfice de H.A.M.A.C, la société holding du groupe Alma Consulting, auquel appartient le cabinet de conseil Alma Consulting Group.
The court provides guidance on liability if a subsidiary goes bankrupt because of the misconduct and careless management of its parent company.
Over the last few years, employees have increasingly sought to hold the parent companies of their employers liable for the subsidiaries’ actions by trying to demonstrate that the parent entity is the employee’s co-employer, i.e., that the employee has two employers: the company that hired him or her and its parent company.
To demonstrate this co-employment situation, the employee must prove either that
Le projet de loi relatif à la lutte contre la fraude fiscale et la grande délinquance économique et financière vient d’être adopté par l’Assemblée nationale le 5 novembre 2013. Ce texte prévoit notamment, dans son article 29, un allongement du délai d’opposition des créanciers aux opérations de dissolution sans liquidation des sociétés unipersonnelles pour le porter de 30 à 60 jours
Executive Order n° 2014-326 of 12 March 2014 reforming French insolvency proceedings was published in the Official Journal of the French Republic (Journal officiel de la République Française) on 14 March 2014.
Considered a priority by the Government, the objectives of this reform include, notably, favoring preventative measures and increasing the powers of creditors.1 Below are the principal provisions which will enter into force on 1 July 2014:
Amicable proceedings: mandat ad hoc, conciliation proceeding