The English High Court has exercised its cram down power and sanctioned the Part 26A restructuring plans proposed by four of Cineworld’s UK operating companies, in face of significant opposition from its landlord creditors, including a novel injunction application by two landlords to exclude their leases from the plans. In sanctioning the plan, Cineworld’s UK Group avoided administration at the end of September.

El Tribunal Supremo recuerda que la prohibición de las sentencias condenatorias con reserva de liquidación debe interpretarse de manera flexible, atendiendo a los motivos justificados y razonables de cada caso en particular

Damos noticia de la sentencia del Tribunal Supremo núm. 1228/2023, de 14 de septiembre, que analiza una cuestión de enorme interés práctico, como son las sentencias de condena con reserva de liquidación.

Evolución de la normativa

The ruling emphasises the need to flexibly interpret the prohibition in light of the reasonable grounds of each case

The Supreme Court's decision on the interpretation of the ban on sentences with a reservation of liquidation – numbered 1228/2023 and dated 14 September – has significant practical importance.

Regulatory developments

The regulation of sentences with a reservation of liquidation has significantly changed over the years.

The Galapagos Group has secured comprehensive affirmation of its 2019 debt restructuring (the “Restructuring”) from the English High Court. This decision is a significant step towards resolution of the highly contested restructuring, and provides market participants with further clarity and certainty when it comes to implementing lender-led transactions in future.

Commercial court powers have been amended to achieve the speed and efficiency required by EU regulations.

Introduction

Today, the UK Supreme Court considered for the first time the existence, content and engagement of the so-called “creditor duty”: the alleged duty of a company’s directors to consider, or to act in accordance with, the interests of the company’s creditors when the company becomes insolvent, or when it approaches, or is at real risk of, insolvency.

Directors resign for many reasons. For example, there may be disagreements among stakeholders about the future course of the company, they may be concerned about the risks associated with financial difficulty/insolvency, or they may just wish to retire.

This is one of a series of articles we at Morton Fraser are producing to guide our clients through the wholesale change proposed in Scots law in relation to security over goods, intellectual property and shares, on the one hand, and invoice finance or the purchase of receivables, on the other. For a general introduction to what the Bill covers, see here.

UK Government introduces a temporary increase to minimum debt level required for a winding up petition

Restrictions have been in place since the start of the pandemic to prevent creditors taking steps to wind up debtor companies. Those restrictions are due to expire on September 30, 2021. To lessen the risk of October seeing a mass rush by creditors seeking to wind up their debtors, the UK Government has introduced a further temporary measure in connection with liquidation petitions.

In this two part article we highlight for directors some of the main ways in which the general protection of limited liability does not apply or can be lost.

Part one of this article discusses those exceptions to the principle of limited liability that arise in insolvency or distress situations. Part two deals with the provisions that have more general applicability.

Breach of duties