Overview
In a recent judgment in Target Insurance Company Limited v Nerico Brothers Limited & Lee Cheuk Fung Jerff [2025] HKCA 1024 the Court of Appeal has clarified that a director can be made personally liable for the costs incurred by a company under their control and that unreasonably opposes its winding up.
Background
In the recent decision in Blockchain Group Company Limited (in liquidation) v. PKF Hong Kong Limited1, Le Pichon DHCJ decided that despite an error resulting in a protective writ naming the defendant as a limited company and formerly a firm, the relevant provisions to amend a party’s name could not be used to essentially replace the limited company with the firm.
The recent judgment in Re Proman International Limited1 reaffirms the court's stance on the suitability of liquidators and the standards of disclosure required of them.
Election of Joe Graham to Partner
Joe Graham was elected partner in the New York office. This year, Joe played a leading role in the chapter 11 cases of Avaya, Benefytt and Diamond Sports. He regularly advises on out-of-court restructurings, bankruptcy litigation and distressed investments. Joe earned his J.D., magna cum laude, and his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame.
Kelley Cornish Inducted into “M&A Advisor Hall of Fame”
On 12 July 2023, the Legislative Council enacted the Bankruptcy and Companies Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2023, a transformative initiative to modernise the filing and notice processes under the Bankruptcy Ordinance (Cap 6) and the Companies (Winding-Up and Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance (Cap 32). With the amendments, the Official Receiver’s Office (ORO) introduces the Electronic Submission System (ESS) to bring the ORO and insolvencies into the 21st century.
Changes effective from 29 December 2023
In the landmark judgment by Linda Chan J in Re Gatecoin Ltd (in liquidation) [2023] HKCFI 914, the Court of First Instance held that cryptocurrencies were property under Hong Kong law capable of being held for distribution to creditors (or beneficiaries if they were trust assets) for the purposes of administrating an insolvent estate. In this article, the authors consider the Court’s ruling and its wider implications for the insolvency regime in Hong Kong, focusing on fraud claims and reviewable transactions in the cryptocurrency context.
In the recent case of Re Guangdong Overseas Construction Corporation [2023] HKCFI 1340 (17 May 2023), the Hon Linda Chan J confirmed the Hon Harris J’s decision in Re Global Brands Group Holding Ltd (in liquidation) [2022] 3 HKLRD 316 in introducing centre of main interest principles in assessing whether or not the Hong Kong court should recognise a foreign liquidation and assist a foreign office-holder.
On April 19, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held in MOAC Mall Holdings LLC v. Transform Holdco LLC that Section 363(m) of the Bankruptcy Code is not jurisdictional. The decision requires parties timely to invoke that provision, or else risk forfeiting its protections. The decision also continues the Supreme Court’s trend of interpreting statutes to be non-jurisdictional (and thus waivable or forfeitable) in the absence of a clear congressional statement to the contrary.
Background
Fifth Circuit Remands Bankruptcy Court’s Refusal to Abstain from Adjudicating Uri Storm-Related Pricing Claims |
On December 5, 2022, in In re Global Cord Blood Corp., 2022 WL 17478530 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Dec. 5, 2022) (“Global Cord”), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the “Court”) denied recognition of a proceeding pending in the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands (the “Cayman Proceeding” and the court, the “Cayman Court”) because it was more like a corporate governance and fraud remediation effort than a collective proceeding for the purpose of dealing with reorganization or liquidation, as Chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code requires.