Rogue directors will find themselves in the firing line if and when The Rating (COVID-19) and Directors Disqualification (Dissolved Companies) Bill, which is currently making its way through parliament, comes into force. The proposed bill will enable the investigation and potential disqualification of directors of dissolved companies, and responds in particular to concerns around COVID-related fraud.
Background
Following our previous alert that considered rent reductions and modifications to lease terms post New Look and Regis, this alert considers what those CVA challenge cases tell landlords about calculating a landlord's claim for voting purposes and the disclosure requirements.
The past week has been frustrating for landlords, with the High Court rejecting a landlord challenge to New Look’s CVA (Lazari Properties 2 Ltd and others v New Look Retailers Ltd and others [2021] EWHC 1209 (Ch)) and days later sanctioning Virgin Active’s restructuring plan (Re Virgin Active Holdings Ltd and others [2021] EWHC 1246 (Ch)).
From 30 April 2021, an administrator will be unable to complete a sale of a substantial part of a company's property to a connected person within the first eight weeks of the administration without either:
- The approval of creditors
- An independent written opinion (positive or negative)
This alert considers the impact of the new regulations in practice, which apply to both pre-packs and post-packs that take place within eight weeks of an administrator's appointment.
When is an evaluator's report required?
The Insolvency Service published its quarterly insolvency statistics for the period January to March 2021 (Q1 2021) on 30 April 2021. By way of comparison, see our previous update on the Q4 2020 statistics here.
The published statistics for the first quarter of 2021 continue the downward trend seen in the previous 12 month period, with company insolvencies falling overall by 22% from the previous quarter.
From 30 April 2021, an administrator will be unable to complete a sale of a substantial part of a company's property to a connected person within the first eight weeks of the administration without either:
- The approval of creditors
- An independent written opinion (positive or negative)
This alert considers the impact of the new regulations in practice, which apply to both pre-packs and post-packs that take place within eight weeks of an administrator's appointment.
As the UK slowly emerges from the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has announced the further extension of the duration of certain temporary measures initially introduced pursuant to the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (CIGA).
On 24 February 2021, the government published new draft Administration (Restrictions on Disposal etc. to Connected Persons) Regulations 2021 (the Regulations), following the consultation process conducted in late 2020. The Regulations are still to be debated by Parliament, but are expected to come into effect on 30 April 2021 with few substantive amendments.
In Uralkali v Rowley and another [2020] EWHC 3442 (Ch), the High Court has confirmed the position in relation to the duties that officeholders owe to third parties involved in the sale process of a business and assets out of an insolvent estate.