On April 1, 2012 Drydocks World LLC (DDW) and its subsidiary Drydocks World — Dubai LLC (DDW Dubai), a Dubai- and Asia-based ship building and repair company that is wholly owned by Dubai World, became the first company to commence a reorganization proceeding in the Special Tribunal¹ (the Tribunal) created by Dubai Decree No. 57 for 2009 (Decree 57) and avail itself of Decree 57’s integrated legal framework.

Facts

The plaintiff (“Mdm Cheo”) commenced divorce proceedings against her husband (“the bankrupt”) two weeks after she knew that the latter had been served a statutory demand by a bank to pay around US$8.67 million.

Global Distressed Alpha Fund I Ltd Partnership v Integrated Financial Advisory Ltd [2012] SGHC 152.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. v Irish Bank Resolution Corporation Limited (formerly Anglo Irish Bank Corporation Limited) [2012] EWHC 2090 (Ch)

The Singapore High Court in Re Lehman Brothers Finance Asia Pte Ltd (in creditors' voluntary liquidation) [2012] SGHC 190 was confronted with the issue of whether debts of a company in a currency other than Singapore Dollars which are admitted in proof by its liquidators should be converted at the exchange rate prevailing on the date on which the company's statutory declaration was lodged, or on the date of the passing of the resolution placing the company in liquidation.

In Re Lehman Brothers Finance Asia Pte Ltd, the liquidators of Lehman Borthers Finance Asia Pte Ltd made an application to court to determine the relevant exchange rate for the conversion of foreign currency debts to Singapore Dollars in creditors' voluntary liquidation ("CVL")

The issue in The Royal Bank of Scotland NV v TT International Ltd [2012] SGCA 53 centered on whether a success-based professional fee arrangement should have been disclosed to the scheme creditors and the Court prior to the sanction of a scheme of arrangement.

When the debts of a bankrupt or an insolvent company are denominated in a foreign currency, the Official Assignee or liquidator would need to convert the debt into Singapore dollars when making a distribution to creditors.

The recent Singapore case of Re Lehman Brothers Finance Asia Pte Ltd (in creditors' voluntary liquidation) determined that the debts of a company in foreign currency, which had been admitted in proof by the liquidators, were to be converted at the exchange rate prevailing at the "resolution date". In this context, resolution date means the day the resolution was passed placing the company into liquidation.

This table provides an overview of the key developments in 2012 to date.