On October 17, 2022, Justice Andrea Masley of the NY Supreme Court issued a decision and order denying all but one of the motion to dismiss claims filed by Boardriders, Oaktree Capital (an equity holder, term lender, and “Sponsor” under the credit agreement), and an ad hoc group of lenders (the “Participating Lenders”) that participated in an “uptiering” transaction that included new money investments and roll-ups of existing term loan debt into new priming debt that would sit at the top of the company’s capital structure.

On October 14, 2022, the Fifth Circuit issued its decision in Ultra Petroleum, granting favorable outcomes to “unimpaired” creditors that challenged the company’s plan of reorganization and argued for payment (i) of a ~$200 million make-whole and (ii) post-petition interest at the contractual rate, not the Federal Judgment Rate. At issue on appeal was the Chapter 11 plan proposed by the “massively solvent” debtors—Ultra Petroleum Corp. (HoldCo) and its affiliates, including subsidiary Ultra Resources, Inc.

On July 6, Delaware Bankruptcy Court Judge Craig T. Goldblatt issued a memorandum opinion in the bankruptcy cases of TPC Group, Inc., growing the corpus of recent court decisions tackling “uptiering” and other similar transactions that have been dubbed by some practitioners and investors as “creditor-on-creditor violence.” This topic has been a hot button issue for a few years, playing out in a number of high profile scenarios, from J.Crew and Travelport to Serta Simmons and TriMark, among others.

Analizamos las principales novedades en materia de insolvencia internacional contenidas en el Proyecto de Ley de reforma del Texto Refundido de la Ley Concursal. Sin perjuicio del texto final que resulte aprobado tras la correspondiente tramitación parlamentaria, el capítulo dedicado a la insolvencia internacional es uno de los que menos enmiendas han recibido y, por tanto, donde previsiblemente se producirán menos cambios.

We analyze the main novelties of the international insolvency regulation introduced in the Insolvency Law Reform Bill. Although the final wording will be approved after its passage through parliament, the chapter on international insolvency is among those that received the fewest amendments and therefore is expected to see the fewest changes. We therefore predict that all or a large part of the comments made below will also be applicable to the wording of the Insolvency Law that will be approved at the end of the process.

The European Court has issued a sentence of special relevance for the operation and effectiveness of the “pre-pack” insolvency procedures. Specifically, it clarifies the requirements that must be met to respect the rights of workers in the event of business transfers.

El órgano judicial europeo ha dictado una sentencia de especial relevancia para el funcionamiento y efectividad de los 'pre-packs' concursales. En concreto, aclara los requisitos que se deben cumplir para respetar los derechos de los trabajadores en caso de transmisión de empresas.

In brief

The courts were busy in the second half of 2021 with developments in the space where insolvency law and environmental law overlap.

In Victoria, the Court of Appeal has affirmed the potential for a liquidator to be personally liable, and for there to be a prospective ground to block the disclaimer of contaminated land, where the liquidator has the benefit of a third-party indemnity for environmental exposures.¹

In brief

Australia's borders may be closed, but from the start of the pandemic, Australian courts have continued to grapple with insolvency issues from beyond our shores. Recent cases have expanded the recognition of international insolvency processes in Australia, whilst also highlighting that Australia's own insolvency regimes have application internationally.

Key takeaways

In brief

With the courts about to consider a significant and long standing controversy in the law of unfair preferences, suppliers to financially distressed companies, and liquidators, should be aware that there have been recent significant shifts in the law about getting paid in hard times.