Entry into force on 1 April 2009 of the new Act on the continuity of companies

The Act of 31 January 2009 on the continuity of companies (Loi relative à la continuité des enterprises/Wet betreffende de continuïteit van de ondernemingen, the "Act") entered into force on 1 April 2009.

In (1) James Robert Tucker (2) Jeremy Spratt (Joint Supervisors of Energy Holdings (No 3)(in liquidation) v Gold Fields Mining LLC [2009] EWCA Civ 173 the Joint Supervisors (JS) of a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) appealed against a decision that they had wrongly excluded a claim form on the grounds that it had been out of time.

On 9 February 2009, the Act of 31 January 2009 on the continuity of companies (Loi relative à la continuité des entreprises/Wet betreffende de continuïteit van de ondernemingen, the "Act") was published in the Belgian State Gazette.

The Act – which actually consists of two separate acts for technical reasons - will replace the unsuccessful Act of 17 July 1997 on composition with creditors.

On November 1 2007 the State Commission for Insolvency presented the Preliminary Bill for an Insolvency Act to the minister of justice. The bill contains rules for the recognition of insolvency proceedings in non-EU countries and the law applicable to foreign proceedings. This update examines those rules and their relationship to the EU Insolvency Regulation and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency.

Case Law

Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals: Insured Can Recover Damages for Mental Anguish under Louisiana Bad Faith Statute Where Insurer Acted in Bad Faith by Delaying Payments
January 9, 2009 | Print this page

On 6 November 2008, the Belgian House of Representatives adopted a bill on the continuity of companies. Although the Senate has exercised its right to examine the bill and may propose amendments until 26 January 2009, we thought it useful to go ahead and address this new bill, which will replace the Act of 17 July 1997 on composition with creditors (Wet op het gerechtelijk akkoord/Loi sur le concordat judiciaire).

In a recent decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, the court reversed a ruling against a D&O insurer in a coverage action arising from a bankruptcy case. In re: SRC Holding Corp., Nos. 07-1327/1335 (8th Cir. Oct. 27, 2008). Click here to read the Eighth Circuit's decision.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts recently denied a mortgage purchaser’s Motion for Relief from Automatic Stay of Chapter 13 proceedings on the ground that the purchaser lacked standing where it could not provide documentary evidence showing each transfer of the mortgage. In re Robin Hayes, Case No. 07-13967-JNF (August 19, 2008).

In November 2004, the Debtor, Robin Hayes, obtained a $324,000 mortgage from Argent Mortgage Company LLC (“Argent Mortgage”). The mortgage subsequently was sold and ultimately ended up with Deutsche Bank.

In Elektrim SA (In Bankruptcy) v Vivendi Universal (& Ors) [2008] EWHC 2155 (Comm) the claimant and defendant companies had entered into an investment agreement governed by Polish law, which contained an arbitration clause providing for arbitration in London. It was common ground that unlike the rest of the investment agreement , the arbitration agreement was governed by English law. In 2003, Vivendi commenced arbitration proceedings in London which were still ongoing on 21 August 2007 when Elektrim was declared bankrupt by an order of the Warsaw court.

On November 1 2007 the State Commission for Insolvency Law presented the Preliminary Bill for an Insolvency Act to the minister of justice. The most important changes to the existing Bankruptcy Act are outlined in this update.