On April 5 and June 8, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives passed bills (the Financial Institution Bankruptcy Act of 2017 ("FIBA") and the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017) that would allow financial institutions to seek protection under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code.

In bankruptcy cases under chapter 11, debtors sometimes opt for a "structured dismissal" when a consensual plan of reorganization or liquidation cannot be reached or conversion to chapter 7 would be too costly. In Czyzewski v. Jevic Holding Corp., 137 S. Ct. 973, 2017 BL 89680 (U.S. Mar. 27, 2017), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Bankruptcy Code does not allow bankruptcy courts to approve distributions in structured dismissals which violate the Bankruptcy Code's ordinary priority rules.

Singapore’s firm trajectory towards becoming an international hub for debt restructuring received a boost with the Companies (Amendment) Act 2017 coming into force on 23 May 2017.

On May 1, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Merit Management Group v. FTI Consulting, No. 16-784, on appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals from the Seventh Circuit. The Court's decision could resolve a circuit split as to whether section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy Code can shield from fraudulent conveyance attack transfers made through financial institutions where such financial institutions are merely "conduits" in the relevant transaction.

On May 1, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Merit Management Group v. FTI Consulting, No. 16-784, on appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals from the Seventh Circuit. See FTI Consulting, Inc. v. Merit Management Group, LP, 830 F.3d 690 (7th Cir. 2016) (a discussion of the Seventh Circuit's ruling is available here).

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on March 22, 2017, in Czyzewski v. Jevic Holding Corp., that without the consent of affected creditors, bankruptcy courts may not approve "structured dismissals" providing for distributions that "deviate from the basic priority rules that apply under the primary mechanisms the [Bankruptcy] Code establishes for final distributions of estate value in business bankruptcies."

The Judicial Insolvency Network (JIN) conference aims to encourage communication and cooperation amongst national courts.

From 10 to 11 October, Singapore hosted the inaugural JIN conference. JIN is a network of insolvency judges from around the world whose aim is to encourage communication and cooperation amongst national courts by pulling together best practices in cross-border restructuring and insolvency to facilitate cross-court communication and cooperation.

Singapore is set to adopt the recommendations of the Committee to Strengthen Singapore as an International Centre for Debt Restructuring.

Introduction

Ask any restructuring professional about the greatest challenge in restructuring and reorganising a business group with operations in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and he/she is likely to say that it is virtually impossible to take over control of the PRC operating subsidiaries without the co-operation of the existing PRC legal representatives.

The liquidator of a company has an obligation to find out what led to the company’s failure, and take steps to maximise recovery for the company’s creditors. He is usually a stranger to the company’s business, and starts off at a disadvantage, having no prior knowledge of the company’s affairs, and usually incomplete and unsatisfactory records. He also has to deal with previous directors and officers of the company who are often uncooperative and may themselves be complicit in the company’s demise.