The initial year of the Trump administration colored much of the political, business, and financial headlines of 2017, both in the U.S. and abroad. Key administration-related developments in 2017 included U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate accord; decertification of the Iranian nuclear deal; steps to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement; the continued investigation of Russian election interference; the showdown with North Korea over nuclear weapons; U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel; and the largest U.S.

The facts

The Applicant granted two guarantees to a bank in 2006 and 2007 in respect of two facility letters. The bank assigned the Second Facility and the benefit of the First Guarantee to the Respondent. The amounts due under the Second Facility fell due for payment on 31 March 2008 and were only demanded for payment in 2015.

In Varela v. AE Liquidation, Inc. (In re AE Liquidation, Inc.), 866 F.3d 515 (3d Cir. 2017), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit became the sixth circuit court of appeals to rule that a "probability standard" applies in determining whether an employer is relieved from giving 60 days’ advance notice to employees of a mass layoff under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (the "WARN Act").

The Facts

In between the presentation of a winding up petition and making of a winding up order, a company entered into a settlement agreement with the Respondent, who founded the company and was previously a shareholder and director of the company.

The Decision

The ability of a trustee or chapter 11 debtor-in-possession ("DIP") to sell bankruptcy estate assets "free and clear" of competing interests in the property has long been recognized as one of the most important advantages of a bankruptcy filing as a vehicle for restructuring a debtor’s balance sheet and generating value. Still, section 363(f) of the Bankruptcy Code, which delineates the circumstances under which an asset can be sold free and clear of "any interest in such property," has generated a fair amount of controversy.

The ability to avoid fraudulent or preferential transfers is a fundamental part of U.S. bankruptcy law. However, when a transfer by a U.S. entity takes place outside the U.S. to a non-U.S. transferee—as is increasingly common in the global economy—courts disagree as to whether the Bankruptcy Code’s avoidance provisions apply extraterritorially to avoid the transfer and recover the transferred assets. A pair of bankruptcy court rulings handed down in 2017 widened a rift among the courts on this issue.

The facts

A former bankrupt had purported claims against a firm of solicitors arising pre-bankruptcy, which vested in his subsequently appointed trustee in bankruptcy. The debtor wrote to both the Official Receiver (OR) and, post appointment, the trustee in bankruptcy, offering to buy the claims. The trustee subsequently disclaimed the claims. The debtor alleged that the claims had already re-vested in him following his notice to both the trustee and the OR.

Summary

Liquidators of a company pursued proceedings against the former administrators/liquidators of the company (Messrs White and Wood) alleging negligent and deliberate/dishonest overcharging of fees.

The facts

The Facts

A former director of the Torex group of companies pursued proceedings against the group’s administrators, bankers and the purchaser claiming that the sale had been at an undervalue, that the bank and purchaser conspired by unlawful means in respect of the sale and that the administrators had been negligent in distributing the prescribed part. The administrators, bank and purchaser all applied to strike out the claims by way of summary judgment.

Claims Against Administrators

Background

The bankrupt and her husband, the appellant, were joint tenants of a business premises pursuant to an underlease. The trustee in bankruptcy disclaimed ‘all my/our interest in Leasehold property under the terms of the [underlease] in respect of [the property]’.

Appellant’s Case

The appellant contended that the disclaimer operated such as to prevent the landlords from claiming for rent in the bankruptcy estate post disclaimer.

Landlords’ Case