Last week saw the government further extend COVID-19 emergency insolvency provisions until 31 March 2021. Since April, these have:
What are the principal types of insolvency proceedings?
In our previous update dated 5 November 2020, we looked at when it is reasonable for insolvency practitioners to continue litigation. In this article, we explore the circumstances in which personal costs orders may be made against liquidators.
Key points
Today, new legislation comes into force* that provides directors of companies in financial difficulty with a second breathing space from the financial impact of the wrongful trading provisions.
On 26 June 2020, the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (Act) came into force with changes to insolvency law to help businesses manage the economic implications of Covid-19. The new Act’s permanent measure on continuing supply stands out for the construction industry.
The oil and gas industry in the United States is highly dependent upon an intricate set of agreements that allow oil and gas to be gathered from privately owned land. Historically, the dedication language in oil and gas gathering agreements—through which the rights to the oil or gas in specified land are dedicated—was viewed as being a covenant that ran with the land. That view was put to the test during the wave of oil and gas exploration company bankruptcies that began in 2014.
This round-up collates the information, analysis and guidance relating to insolvency issues shared by our Construction and Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy teams during the COVID-19 pandemic. For further information on any of the issues below, please get in touch with one of the Key Contacts.
The stringent regulations introduced to avoid the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic caused widespread disruption across UK sites. The consequent commercial challenges were too great for some businesses − despite government measures to help those facing financial difficulty. Inevitably, insolvencies followed.
The past year has seen some important judgments and hearings (with judgment awaited at the time of writing) on several subjects, some of which may shape the future of UK litigation for years to come. Litigants and litigators have also spent a good part of the year getting used to a new way of conducting litigation—remotely and fully electronically. Starting with contract law, while there has been little by way of Supreme Court guidance on the subject, the lower courts continue to issue interesting judgments.
On August 26, 2020, the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that the Bankruptcy Code does not require subordination agreements to be strictly enforced in order for a court to confirm a cramdown plan, so long as the plan does not discriminate unfairly.