Judgment in the Court of Appeal case of Pillar Denton v Game Retail- about rent due during the administration of Game was handed down yesterday. It is a landmark ruling for administrators, on the thorny issue of the payment of rent during the period of the tenant’s administration.

An updated Statement of Insolvency Practice (SIP) relating to pre-packaged sales in administrations has been issued by the Joint Insolvency Committee, effective from 1 November 2013. The new SIP aims to provide greater clarity for creditors, with insolvency practitioners (IPs) having to provide earlier notification of the pre-packaged sale and more detail as to the circumstances surrounding, and terms of, the sale transaction.

As you may recall, the High Court ruled in December 2010, in a case brought by the administrators of 20 insolvent companies in the Lehman and Nortel groups, that the cost of complying with a financial support direction ("FSD"), issued by the Pensions Regulator after the date of the commencement of a company's administration or liquidation, would rank as an expense of the administration or liquidation.