It’s not the first occasion that a major serviced office provider has landed in a corporate restructuring but it may be the most high-profile. The current evolving situation follows on from such previous fireworks as the failed IPO, a corporate reorganisation that swapped a US headco “inc.“ for an “LLC” (prompting litigation at the end of the last decade), and continuing market uncertainty as to the robustness of the brand.
On 2 August 2021, the Treasury released a consultation paper seeking feedback on changes to improve creditors’ schemes of arrangement in Australia (the Consultation Paper). The submissions process has now closed.
The Treasury has released a consultation paper on changes to improve creditors’ schemes of arrangement in Australia (the Consultation Paper).[1] The main proposal in the Consultation Paper is the consideration of a broad automatic moratorium, available to companies proposing a creditors’ schem
In what is likely to be the most significant change to the UK restructuring and insolvency market since the Enterprise Act 2002, the Court has yesterday1 paved the way for restructuring plans under Part 26A to the Companies Act 2006 ("RPs") to be used to compromise the rights of landlords, financial creditors and other unsecured creditors provided the company shows that those creditors are "out of the money". There may even be no need to ask those compromised creditors to vote on the RP.
A case study of what to look out for when a tenant or its guarantor is looking like it is heading for financial difficulties
As a prudent and prepared landlord, it's always sensible to assess what potential remedies you might have should a tenant (or its guarantor) become insolvent or enter into some form of insolvency procedure. In this bulletin, we look at a short hypothetical case study and identify some of the key issues that landlords will need to assess in such circumstances.
1. The case study scenario
Australia’s new ipso facto regime is now in effect. It stays the enforcement of contractual rights triggered upon the entry of a corporate counterparty into certain restructuring and insolvency processes. The regime will affect a broad range of contracts entered into on or after 1 July 2018; however, certain contracts and contractual rights have been excluded from the operation of the stay pursuant to statutory instruments which have just been issued.
The New South Wales Court of Appeal has, in a decision that has surprised many practitioners, dismissed an appeal which challenged the composition of classes in the creditors’ scheme of arrangement involving Boart Longyear Limited.1
In a recent landmark decision, Re Boart Longyear Limited [2017] NSWSC 567, the New South Wales Supreme Court granted orders to convene creditor meetings for two schemes of arrangement in respect of the restructuring plan of Boart Longyear Limited.
Insolvency reform: let’s not forget about the scheme of arrangement regime (again!)
In brief