The Royal Court has recently handed down the final decision in the matter of Eagle Holdings Limited (in compulsory liquidation).[1] In this decision, the Royal Court of Guernsey provided guidance and assistance to the joint liquidators regarding a distribution of surplus funds.

Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal (CFA) recently handed down its judgment in the case of Guy Kwok-Hung Lam v Tor Asia Credit Master Fund LP [2023] HKCFA 9, upholding the Court of Appeal's earlier decision that a creditor's bankruptcy petition presented in Hong Kong should not be allowed to proceed where the petitioned debt is disputed and arises from an agreement with an exclusive jurisdiction clause (EJC) in favour of a foreign court.

On June 6, 2023, the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (the “Court”) confirmed Serta Simmons Bedding, LLC’s (“Serta”) Chapter 11 plan and held that Serta’s 2020 uptiering transaction (the “Uptiering Transaction”) did not breach Serta’s 2016 first lien credit agreement (the “Credit Agreement”).

Investing in or acquiring distressed assets can be a lucrative investment strategy for those with a healthy risk appetite and a roadmap for sourcing and evaluating quality assets.

Following a steep run-up in crypto asset prices and valuations of crypto-adjacent businesses in the last two years, there has been a sharp increase in companies and assets in the space looking at deeply distressed valuations, liquidity crunches or formal insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings.

Currently, the British Virgin Islands has no legislative framework for regulating third party litigation funding. Until recently, the absence of such a framework led many to believe that the rules against maintenance and champerty still operated so as in practice to prevent litigants from raising funds from third parties to prosecute or to defend claims. In Crumpler v Exential Investments Inc (BVIHC(COM) 2020/0081; 29 September 2020) Jack J clarified that third party funding arrangements were enforceable in the BVI.

German insolvency law is governed by a comprehensive Insolvency Code that entered into force on 1 January 1999 and has since then regularly been subject to amendments from time to time. There is only one primary uniform insolvency procedure that applies to both individuals and companies. In the following, we focus on companies. Insolvency proceedings can be initiated against any natural or legal person, excluding certain legal persons organized under public law, such as the German Federation or the German states.

In the Matter of Global Cord Blood Corporation (FSD 108 of 2022, 31 March 2023), Kawaley J confirmed and clarified the legal test that applies when a third party seeks to be heard on a winding up petition. The case is a reminder that, generally speaking, only legal shareholders of a company are entitled to be joined to petition proceedings or present a contributory's petition.

The continued fall-out of the high-profile collapse of the Three Arrows crypto fund has seen another development, with the BVI Court permitting alternative service by Twitter after the collapsed fund's directors failed to appear for examination before the BVI Court. [1]

Many businesses continue to experience unprecedented pressure on their cash flow given, among other things, the continued fall-out from the global pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the cost of living crisis, rising interest rates, the end of cheap debt and the expected global downturn.

To mitigate their exposure to personal liability, it's important that directors of insolvent companies or companies in the zone of insolvency comply with their duties to act in the best interests of the company as a whole. This includes the interests of creditors as a whole.

In a recent judgment, Justice Doyle considered the principles applicable in agreeing to adjourn the hearing of a winding up petition. He granted only a short adjournment to allow opposing experts time to prepare a joint memorandum to assist the Court in determining issues related to the standing of the petitioner and issues in relation to its debt. The debtor's application for a longer adjournment was dismissed.