The forecast for the English scheme and plan looks set fair despite concerns around Brexit turbulence.

The restructuring market’s appetite for Part 26 schemes of arrangement and Part 26A restructuring plans shows no signs of diminishing, with some debtors (Smile Telecoms and ED&F Man) even taking a second bite of the cherry. In this article, we explore recurring themes identified in the market throughout the past 18 months.

Out of the money, out of the room

Debtors and investors have an enhanced choice of restructuring venues as the EU Restructuring Directive is rolled out in Member States

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) (the “Court”) in Re Harte Gold Corp.,^[1]issued its first published decision on the use of reverse vesting orders (“RVOs”) finding that the

The decision raises new questions about whether cross-border insolvency recognition and assistance between mainland China and Hong Kong will be a two-way street.

A restructuring plan completed earlier this year by Smile Telecoms notches up a number of firsts.

African telecommunications provider Smile Telecoms Holding Limited, incorporated in Mauritius, successfully completed a restructuring plan (the Plan) under Part 26A of the UK Companies Act 2006 at the end of March 2021.

The Plan features a number of novel actions, including:

Latham & Watkins operates worldwide as a limited liability partnership organized under the laws of the State of Delaware (USA) with affiliated limited liability partnerships conducting the practice in France, Hong Kong, Italy, Singapore, and the United Kingdom and as an affiliated partnership conducting the practice in Japan. Latham & Watkins operates in South Korea as a Foreign Legal Consultant Office. Latham & Watkins works in cooperation with the Law Office of Salman M. Al-Sudairi in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Au cours des deux dernières années, les ordonnances de dévolution inversée (« ODI ») sont passées de concept inaperçu à l’outil de choix dans de nombreuses restructurations complexes menées en vertu de la Loi sur les arrangements avec les créanciers des compagnies (la « LACC »). Comme les spécialistes en restructuration recourent de plus en plus aux ODI, la question se pose : les ODI remplaceront-elles les plans traditionnels pris en vertu de la LACC?

In the past two years, reverse vesting orders (“RVOs”) have gone from obscurity to being the tool of choice in many complex restructurings under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (the “CCAA”). As restructuring practitioners increasingly employ RVOs, it begs the question: Will RVOs replace traditional CCAA plans?

The reforms, which are the result of the transposition of the EU’s Restructuring Directive, should come into force in October.

Key Points:

The decision provides new judicial guidance for determining the boundaries of cross-class cram down tests. 

On 28 June 2021, the High Court declined to sanction a restructuring plan proposed by Hurricane Energy plc (Hurricane), an AIM listed oil drilling company, under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006 (Act). The plan would have seen shareholders diluted to 5% of Hurricane’s equity, with the remaining 95% issued to bondholders as consideration for a partial debt-for-equity swap.