Are the courts of England and Wales establishing themselves as a flexible forum for cross-border enforceability? Here, we consider this question in light of two recent High Court decisions: Re Silverpail Dairy (Ireland) Unlimited Co. [2023] EWHC 895 (Ch) (Silverpail) and Invest Bank PSC v El-Husseini & Ors [2023] EWHC 2302 (Comm) (Invest Bank).
In the recent case – Paulus Tannos v Heince Tombak Simanjuntak and others and another appeal [2020] SGCA 85 (‘Paulus Tannos’), the Singapore Court of Appeal held that in determining whether to recognise a foreign bankruptcy order, the Singapore Courts could decline to recognise the foreign bankruptcy order (‘BO’) if there was, according to Singapore law, a breach of natural justice in obtaining the foreign BO.
Facts
No one could have predicted the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on businesses and economies worldwide. It has crippled companies all over the world with household names such as Macy’s in the US filing for bankruptcy and closer to home, the collapse of commodities trading giant Hin Leong Trading. Unfortunately, analysts speculate the worst is yet to come.
The Dutch Supreme Court has confirmed the decision of the Amsterdam Court of Appeal, which found that the bankruptcy of the Russian based oil company, Yukos, could not be recognised in the Netherlands because it violates Dutch public policy.
The High Court of Hong Kong refused to allow a Chapter 11 Trustee to disclose a Decision from Hong Kong winding up proceedings in the US bankruptcy court. The US proceedings were commenced to prevent a creditor from taking action following a breach of undertakings given to the Hong Kong court in circumstances where the company had no jurisdictional connection with the US.
The Australian Federal Court has clarified the limitations for foreign entities and their office holders in pursuing action in Australia to access the voidable transaction provisions of the Australian Corporations Act.
Control to Serbian Creditors- the amendments to the Serbian Insolvency Act
The recent amendments to the Serbian Insolvency Act enacted 9 December 2018 have placed more control into creditors’ hands allowing them to suggest the insolvency administrator to be appointed, as well as providing less restrictive provisions on the proposers of reorganisation proposals.
Following our previous article, the Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal following the High Court deciding that a moratorium in relation to restructuring proceedings in Azerbaijan could not be extended in breach of the Gibbs rule, allowing two significant creditors to proceed with their claims in the English Courts.