A note on In the matter of Restore Builders Limited En Désastre [2024] JRC 290.

The Royal Court of Jersey has recently held, for the first time, that the actions of a Jersey company director constituted wrongful trading and ordered that he be personally liable for the company's debts and disqualified as a director for ten years.

Introduction

The Jersey insolvency legislative and common law framework provides an adaptable and commercially focussed regime for the supervision and handling of the liquidation and restructuring of Jersey entities. This note addresses the different mechanisms by which Jersey incorporated companies may be wound up.

Winding up of a solvent company

A solvent, or "summary", winding up commences where the shareholders voluntarily pass, or are deemed to pass, and file, a special resolution to do so and the directors have confirmed either that the company:

The Supreme Court issued its much-anticipated ruling yesterday in the First Circuit case of Mission Product Holdings, Inc. v. Tempnology, LLC, resolving a circuit split that had developed on “whether [a] debtor‑licensor’s rejection of an [executory trademark licensing agreement] deprives the licensee of its rights to use the trademark.” And it answered that question in the negative; i.e., in favor of licensees.

When it comes to offsets, bankruptcy law provides for two distinct remedies: (1) setoff and (2) recoupment.

Setoff allows a creditor to reduce the amount of prepetition debt it owes a debtor with a corresponding reduction of that creditor’s prepetition claim against the debtor. The remedy of setoff is subject to the automatic stay, as well as various conditions under § 553 of the Bankruptcy Code — including that it does not apply if the debts arise on opposite sides of the date on which the debtor’s case was commenced.