Delaware has long established itself as a welcoming jurisdiction for various legal purposes. It began as a center for company incorporation by providing a corporate law framework that was flexible and continuously updated for new developments. More recently, Delaware has applied those same principles (plus an expansive view of venue) to become a center for major chapter 11 reorganization filings.
On 7 November 2014, OW Bunker A/S (“OW”), a global supplier and trader of marine fuel, filed for bankruptcy in Denmark. Further bankruptcies of OW subsidiaries and affiliates swiftly followed, including the bankruptcy of certain U.S. and Singapore-based OW entities.
When goods are delivered to a professional storage operator (we will refer to them as a warehouseman) for safe keeping, they may become subject to a lien. A lien is a security right which gives the warehouseman rights over the goods that can take precedence over the rights of others, including the owner. The warehouseman is entitled to exercise the lien when he or she is left unpaid for services rendered and in so doing will gain legal control over the goods.
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.
We identify and explain four of the court’s key findings below:
1. “In all matters where execution is sought against a primary residence, the entire claim, including the monetary judgment, must be adjudicated at the same time”.
On 1 September 2016, Hanjin Shipping Co Limited ('Hanjin') successfully applied for and obtained an order whereby it was placed under rehabilitation. Such an order was obtained within 24 hours of the company making application to the Korean courts, without notice or input from other interested parties, most notably Hanjin's creditors.
Bond restructurings Implementation mechanisms: schemes vs. exchange offers December 2015 ■ a principal haircut; ■ extended maturity; and / or ■ a change in coupon (rate and/or whether the coupon is cash-pay or PIK). Exchange offers are based entirely on voluntary participation. They can only succeed if a critical mass of bondholders agrees to participate. A “carrot and stick” approach is used to incentivise participation and penalise holdouts. For background on the use of schemes of arrangement as restructuring tools, see here.
A lot is written about structuring robust intellectual property licensing programs, whether from the perspective of licensors or licensees of intellectual property rights. This requires a careful consideration of legal, tax and regulatory issues that impact on the licensing arrangement.
The legal risks can’t always be managed adequately through the careful negotiation and drafting of a licence agreement. Some of these risks need to be managed independently of the drafting of any agreements.
On March 22, 2018, Sungdong Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (“Sungdong”), a mid-sized shipyard in South Korea, filed a petition to commence a “rehabilitation proceeding” with the Changwon District Court. A rehabilitation proceeding is a court-administered reorganization proceeding comparable to a Chapter 11 proceeding in the United States. In a rehabilitation proceeding, the debtor continues to do business while restructuring its pre-existing debt.
The Changwon District Court in South Korea has this afternoon (23 March 2018) issued a comprehensive prohibition order (CPO) following the application of Sungdong Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co. Ltd (Sungdong) to enter Chapter 11 Rehabilitation filed earlier this month.
The effect of the CPO is to provisionally prohibit all creditors of the yard from taking legal action in South Korea to secure and enforce their claims by attachment, arrest or foreclosing of their security interests.