Australia's largest corporate insolvency reform in 30 years is set to be introduced at the beginning of 2021. Draft legislation, which applies to small businesses, was released last week. Organisations need to familiarise themselves with the information ahead of an anticipated wave of insolvencies in 2021, as COVID-19 related government incentives cease.
Key takeouts
Sarah Banda U.S. Bankruptcy Court (N.D. Ga.); Atlanta On May 15th, JCPenney announced that the company was filing for chapter 11 relief. Another in a trend of major retailers filing for bankruptcy. JCPenney's announcement was expected, as forced closures in the pandemic exacerbated the company's pre-COVID financial problems.1 However, what raised some eyebrows is the company's plan to spin its properties into a real estate investment trust (REIT) as a part of its proposal to emerge from bankruptcy.
What's next for Australian businesses after the temporary COVID-19 insolvency law relief expires at the end of 2020? The government's new announcement sheds light on the next steps.
Key takeouts
The Australian Government has announced proposed major reforms to corporate insolvency laws for incorporated businesses with liabilities of less than $1 million that are facing financial distress.
COVID-19 Key Developments __ Top Story | COVID-19:Temporary amendments to insolvency laws extended to 31 December 2020 On 7 September The Treasurer and the Attorney General issued a joint statement announcing that the government plans to extend temporary insolvency and bankruptcy protections for businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic until 31 December 2020. MinterEllison's Michael Hughes has released an article providing an expert summary of the changes. This can be accessed on our website here.
On 7 September 2020, the federal government announced that the temporary changes to the creditors' statutory demand and insolvent trading laws have been extended to 31 December 2020.
Key takeouts
In March 2020, the Commonwealth Government's early responses to the economic consequences of the COVID-19 included temporarily suspending and changing important elements of Australia's insolvency laws. These temporary changes were due to expire on 25 September 2020. The government has now announced that this period will be extended to 31 December 2020.
The Government has implemented significant temporary measures to ensure that our insolvency laws and processes do not expose companies and individuals to undue risk. This will hopefully avoid a potentially unprecedented wave of insolvencies.
Key takeouts
The Government announced a six month suspension of insolvent trading laws.
The relevant debts will still be due and payable by the company in the normal way.
Egregious cases of dishonesty and fraud will still be subject to criminal penalties.
On August 31, 2020, the Tenth Circuit affirmed the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Colorado’s holding that certain student loans not guaranteed by a governmental unit may be discharged in bankruptcy.
The Federal Budget update focused on Australia's economic position and the impact of the Government's response to COVID-19 and the 2019 – 20 Bushfires. Though no new measures were specifically announced, there were some additional items for certain existing programmes.
Key forecasted Budget figures
On June 23, the New York County Supreme Court issued a rare preliminary injunction temporarily halting a mezzanine lender’s UCC foreclosure sale of the Mark Hotel in New York City because the procedures for the foreclosure sale were not commercially reasonable in light of conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic (D2 Mark LLC v. Orei VI Investments LLC, 2020 WL 3432950 (2020)).
On June 22, 2020, FERC issued a declaratory order confirming its view that it shares jurisdiction with the United States Bankruptcy Court (“Bankruptcy Court”) over transportation agreements between ETC Tiger Pipeline, LLC (“ETC Tiger”) and Chesapeake Energy Marketing L.L.C. (“Chesapeake”). As a result, aside from obtaining approval from the Bankruptcy Court to reject its contracts with ETC Tiger, Chesapeake must seek a determination from FERC as to whether a filed rate may be modified or abrogated under the Natural Gas Act (“NGA”).