The Restructuring Directive of 20 June 2019 harmonises insolvency legislation for the first time at the European level.

An important part of this Directive concerns preventive restructuring frameworks, which aim to limit the unnecessary liquidation of viable companies.

In Belgium, this will mainly impact judicial reorganisation, and more specifically judicial reorganisation by means of collective agreement.

La directive du 20 juin 2019 relative aux restructurations harmonise pour la première fois la législation sur l'insolvabilité au niveau européen.

Une partie importante de cette directive concerne les cadres de restructuration préventive, qui visent à limiter la liquidation inutile d'entreprises viables.

En Belgique, cela aura principalement un impact sur la réorganisation judiciaire, et plus particulièrement sur la réorganisation judiciaire par accord collectif.

On September 15, President Biden announced a tentative deal with unions representing tens of thousands of railroad workers that helped narrowly avoid a strike that threatened to devastate the country’s delicate supply chains that have been strained since the beginning of the pandemic. Now the country awaits the outcome of the union member votes (which we may not know until mid-November), but even if the members approve the deal, the retail sector will still face empty shelves, job vacancies and surging inflation.

A recent law, which came into force on 21 July 2022, amends the regulation for the accounting professions with regard to their professional practice and the anti-money laundering prevention.

The law was enacted after the Constitutional Court ruled in two judgments that various provisions of the law relating to the audit profession and the anti-money laundering law were against the constitution.

Hereafter we discuss the impact of the new law on auditors, certified public accountants and the unregulated tax advisors.

It’s been a hard year for cryptocurrency. The values of most cryptocurrencies, including major coins such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, have continued to tumble. In fact, the price of one stablecoin, which is a form of cryptocurrency tied to another currency, commodity or financial instrument, de-pegged from its cryptocurrency token and entered into a downward spiral. Ultimately, the stablecoin and the crypto token it was pegged to collapsed, erasing $18 billion of value with it.

In the world of cryptocurrency, exchange platforms act as intermediaries allowing investors to buy and sell assets while making money through commissions and transaction fees. Any assets purchased may be held in either non-custodial or custodial wallets. If a customer chooses a custodial wallet, the platform holds and manages the assets through a private key, which is a string of characters that serves as a password. If a key is lost or forgotten, it may be impossible to recover, resulting in the permanent loss of the asset.

As a result of Purdue Pharma’s proposed plan of reorganization, and the ongoing opioid epidemic that continues to grip the nation, the debate over non-consensual third-party releases has gone mainstream despite being a popular tool for debtors for decades.

Le dépôt des comptes annuels est l'une des obligations légales les plus importantes pour les sociétés. En effet, à défaut du dépôt des comptes (dans le délai légal), la responsabilité des administrateurs peut être engagée. Ce manquement peut entraîner de lourdes conséquences ... même si cela ne se produit qu’une fois. Et un homme ou une femme prévenue(e) en vaut deux. Il va de soi que vous ne voulez pas vous réveiller avec une société qui a été dissoute judiciairement alors que vous y avez encore des actifs et des activités.

De jaarrekening neerleggen is een van de belangrijkste wettelijke verplichtingen van vennootschappen. Meer nog, bij niet (tijdige) neerlegging komt de aansprakelijkheid van bestuurders in het gedrang. Vennootschappen die hun jaarrekening niet tijdig hebben neergelegd riskeren verregaande gevolgen … zelfs na één keer. En een gewaarschuwd man of vrouw is er twee waard. U wil niet wakker worden met een vennootschap die gerechtelijk ontbonden werd terwijl u daar nog activa en activiteiten in hebt.

Expected for almost two months, the law that partially and temporarily modifies the insolvency legislation has been adopted on 21 March 2021 at last.

This is nearly two months after the general moratorium on bankruptcies, that was in force since 28 October 2020, expired.

1. Why this legislative intervention was necessary

The main purpose of this measure is to adapt the existing restructuring toolbox to the needs of Belgian companies facing major financial difficulties due to the corona crisis.