If a company becomes insolvent or experiences a liquidity crunch, which necessitates a restructuring or resort to higher-risk financing arrangements, the directors should consider whether to commence formal proceedings to facilitate the restructuring or financing.

Starting now, all creditors must exercise more caution when trying to collect against discharged bankruptcy debtors, because a creditor’s good faith belief that the discharge injunction did not apply is no longer a viable defense. On Monday, June 3, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court clarified the standard for awarding sanctions against a creditor for violation of the discharge injunction, unanimously holding that a court may hold a creditor in civil contempt for violating a discharge order if there is “no fair ground of doubt” that the discharge order barred the creditor’s conduct.

Not for a long time has the importance of understanding and managing a director’s duties in times of financial distress been so overwhelming. Here, Carey Olsen partner David Jones and associate Tim Molton examine those duties in greater detail, particularly in relation to Guernsey’s company law.

Service area / Restructuring and Insolvency

Location / British Virgin Islands

Date / February 2019

This article considers how to challenge an act, omission or decision of an office-holder.

The right to bring a challenge derives from Section 273 of the BVI Insolvency Act 2003, which provides:

A person aggrieved by an act, omission or decision of an office holder may apply to the Court and the Court may confirm, reverse or modify the act, omission or decision of the office holder.

Zone of insolvency - directors in the firing line

Happy New Year?

2018 saw a number of high profile insolvencies around the world, including in Guernsey. The climate for many sectors remains extremely challenging with the UK further hindered by continuing uncertainty around Brexit. EY's Profit Warning Stress Index hit its joint highest level for two years in the third quarter of 2018 with 68 UK quoted companies issuing profit warnings.

The Court of Appeal of Jersey has now considered in an appeal against the Royal Court’s decision of 10 January 2018 the case of a UK trustee in bankruptcy (the “Trustee”), whose appointment had been recognised in Jersey by order of the Court and who had been authorised to obtain documents and/or information for particular purposes, who was later subject to coercive measures in his home jurisdiction requiring the disclosure of such material for different, unauthorised purposes (in this case an Information Notice issued by HMRC pursuant to Schedule 36 of the UK Finance Act 2008 (the “

The Supreme Court of Bermuda has confirmed once again its willingness to order Confidentiality Orders in cases that involve the administration of private trusts. In the 2018 case of In the Matter of the E Trust (the “E Trust”), Acting Justice, Shade Subair Williams (subsequently appointed as a Puisne Judge) reaffirmed previous rulings that private trust proceedings can be anonymized and heard privately in Chambers.

The Facts

In Lagos v. United States, 584 U.S. ___ (2018), the Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling that limits the ability of corporate victims of fraud to seek reimbursement of legal fees for internal investigations. The case began when GE Capital discovered that Sergio Lagos falsified numerous invoices for his company, which he used as collateral to obtain tens of millions of dollars in loans from GE Capital.

Bankruptcies and other debt restructuring activities for health care providers are on the rise, and recent headlines related to the industry suggest further stormy weather ahead. Please join Dykema attorneys Mark Andrews and Lea Courington as they discuss the intersection of healthcare and insolvency. What is the current state of the industry? Why are nursing homes, hospitals and other healthcare institutions in financial trouble? What factors are changing reimbursement rates? What effect does litigation have on the success or failure of the nursing home industry?

The Royal Court of Jersey was recently required to consider its approach when a trustee in bankruptcy appointed in a foreign jurisdiction (the “Trustee”), whose appointment has been recognised in Jersey by order of the Court and who has been authorised to obtain documents and/or information for particular purposes, is later subject to coercive measures in his home jurisdiction requiring the disclosure of such material for different, unauthorised purposes.