Landlords of New Look stores have failed in their challenge to a CVA which wrote off rent arrears and imposed turnover rents on hundreds of stores.

Like so many high street fashion retailers New Look was already in a precarious position before the pandemic hit. When its turnover was reduced to nil overnight it projected it would run out of cash without help.

Given the overarching Madoff Ponzi scheme as well as other mini-Madoff schemes that surfaced in its wake, many have been following issues arising from the ability of a trustee to claw back transfers (either as preferential or as fraudulent transfers) from investors who redeemed their interests in a private investment fund or managed account that turned out to be a Ponzi scheme. The law generally provides that an investor’s principal investment is protected so long as it is received in good faith and for value.