Over the weekend, the Business Secretary announced that UK Insolvency Laws will be changed.
The changes will give businesses “extra time to weather the storm” and give comfort to directors who, challenged with trading through a difficult cash flow period, will not face claims for wrongful trading.
Relaxation of wrongful trading provisions
The proposed measures alleviate concerns that borrowing additional funds offered by the Government could place a director at risk of personal liability.
In this article, we focus on working capital and consider ways a business can seek to weather the storm and preserve all-important liquidity through this challenging period.
Practical Tips
Given the unprecedented challenges presented by COVID-19 globally, what can senior management do in order to manage and mitigate the risk to the company's financial health?
As we close the week which has seen the Government and the Bank of England publish details of their financial support package for business, the business community awaits the formal launch of both the Coronovirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Covid Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF) next week.
CBIL scheme
The hair salon Regis announced recently that the company has entered administration. The news might not come as a surprise because the chain, prior to the company’s administration, was subject to a company voluntary arrangement (“CVA”) whose validity was challenged by landlords.
The joint administrator of Regis commented: “trading challenges, coupled with the uncertainty caused by the legal challenge, have necessitated the need for an administration appointment”.
Today the Government published draft provisions for inclusion in the Finance Bill which will amend the Insolvency Act 1986 and grant HMRC preferential status on insolvency. A status that was removed in 2003 but which will be re-instated (in part) from 6 April 2020.
Despite huge concern from the lending market, voiced in responses to the Government’s consultation on this measure, the only material change we can see is confirmation that preferential status will not apply to insolvency proceedings commenced before 6 April 2020.
The proposal to reinstate Crown preference in insolvency has met resistance from all angles; the insolvency profession, turnaround experts, accountants, lawyers and funders. But despite HMRC’s bold statement in its consultation paper that the re-introduction of Crown preference will have little impact on funders, it is clear following a discussion with lenders that it may well have a far wider impact on existing and new business, business rescue and the economy in general than HMRC believes.
In the holiday season many of us jet-set to foreign shores – but do we ever think about how we might get home if our budget airline goes bust or are we just hunting for the best deals to make the pound stretch further?
The last decade has seen a number of airlines collapse or be swallowed up by competitors:
In March 2017, the States of Guernsey approved the reform of Guernsey’s insolvency laws, which afford greater protection to creditors and investors. The necessary legislative amendments are currently being drafted although the date of issue is yet to be determined.
Key changes proposed include:
This briefing note describes the key features of the incorporated cell company (“ICC”) and summarises the formation, structure and liquidation procedures particular to this type of company.
Key features
This briefing note provides an outline of the different processes of voluntary winding up and striking off under the Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 (as amended) (the “Law”). It does not cover compulsory winding up or the specific provisions on winding up of protected cell companies and incorporated cell companies. Further information on the effect of the Law on the winding up of these company structures can be found in our separate briefing notes on those subjects.
Voluntary Winding Up