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.

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. 

The ruling confirmed that Section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 has extensive international reach, and does not require a transaction at an undervalue to leave the debtor with insufficient assets.

Background

The decision confirms that company voluntary arrangements remain a flexible tool for restructuring leasehold portfolios.

• No rigid test exists for “basic fairness” that requires a landlord to receive at least market rent, or that contractual rent should be interfered with to the minimum extent necessary.

• If a landlord is entitled to terminate the lease and receive a better outcome than in the alternative, any automatic unfairness from changes to the terms of the lease is negated.

• Whether a CVA is unfairly prejudicial depends on all the circumstances of the case.

Landmark decision holds that the SFO does not have the power to procure documents from foreign companies outside the jurisdiction.

Der Bundesgerichtshof (BGH) hat mit Urteil vom 18. November 2020 (IV ZR 217/19) entschieden, dass Ansprüche gegen GmbH-Geschäftsführer auf Ersatz von Zahlungen, die nach Insolvenzreife vorgenommen wurden, vom Versicherungsschutz der D&O-Versicherung umfasst sind. Mehrere Oberlandesgerichte hatten dies zuletzt noch anders beurteilt. In der Praxis hatte dies zu einer erheblichen Unsicherheit geführt, nicht zuletzt mit Blick auf die infolge der COVID-19-Pandemie vorübergehend geänderten Insolvenzantragspflichten.

Hintergrund der Entscheidung

知的財産法：改正個人情報保護法に関する動き 競争法／独禁法①：公取委、フランチャイズ・ガイドライン改正案の公表 競争法／独禁法②：ドイツ競争法の重要な改正 エネルギー・インフラ：発電側基本料金制度に関する続報 労働法：「男性の育児休業取得促進策等について」の建議について 会社法：会社法施行規則及び会社計算規則の一部改正－定時株主総会におけるウェブ開示によるみなし提供制度の対象範囲の拡大特例－ 危機管理：日本監査役協会が「企業集団における不祥事防止を切り口とした監査体制強化の在り方」を公表 一般民事・債権管理：「事業者を支える融資・再生実務のあり方に関する研究会」による論点整理の公表（新たな担保権「事業成長担保権（仮称）」の提言） M&A：中小企業庁、産業競争力強化法等の一部を改正する等の法律案の概要を公表 ファイナンス・ディスクロージャー：経済産業省「事業報告等と有価証券報告書の一体的開示FAQ（制度編）」 税務：国税庁、「在宅勤務に係る費用負担等に関するFAQ（源泉所得税関係）」を公表 中国・アジア（中国）：「外国の法律及び措置の不当な域外適用の阻止に関する規則」の公布 新興国（UAE）：オンショアの外資規制緩和を含む会社法の改正 国際訴訟・仲裁：ICC、SIAC等の近時の動向

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