Good morning.
Please find our summaries of last week’s civil decision of the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
United Cannabis Corp. entered into chapter 11 several days ago in an effort to stop various patent infringement claims being lodged against it. Most bankruptcy courts have said that use of the federal bankruptcy laws by companies in the cannabis space is a no go because even if the companies are in compliance with applicable state laws, they are operating in violation of federal law. United Cannabis Corp. mostly deals in hemp based products, the production and sale of which do not violate the Controlled Substances Act.
Original Newsletter(s) this article was published in: Commercial Litigation Update: April 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic is, first and foremost, a human and health crisis. Social and physical distancing has been the almost universal response to this pandemic. The effect of social distancing on the economy, however, is significant.
Original Newsletter(s) this article was published in: Commercial Litigation Update: April 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic is, first and foremost, a human and health crisis. Social and physical distancing has been the almost universal response to this pandemic. The effect of social distancing on the economy, however, is significant.
Business Secretary Alok Sharma has announced that the government will be introducing measures to “improve the legal options for companies running into major difficulties. The overriding objective is to help UK companies, which need to undergo a financial rescue or restructuring process, to keep trading. These measures will give those firms extra time and space to weather the storm and be ready when the crisis ends”.1
The temporary amendments to the insolvency laws which are being considered include:
Good afternoon.
Please find below our summaries of this past week’s civil decisions of the Court of Appeal for Ontario. Topics covered included insurance broker negligence, zoning (use) bylaw enforcement, the wrongful termination of a commercial lease and the automatic right of appeal of bankruptcy orders.
Good afternoon.
Following are this week’s summaries of the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
In Thistle v Schumilias, an insurer refused to pay out on a life insurance policy on the basis that the insured had failed to disclose a pre-existing medical condition. The respondent commenced an action against the insurance company and during that litigation became aware of the potential professional negligence of the insurance agent who sold the policy.
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On December 20, 2019, Judge Marvin Isgur in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (Houston Division) entered a memorandum opinion which held that debtors' midstream gathering agreements formed real property covenants "running with the land" under Oklahoma law - and such agreements could not be subject to rejection under section 365 of the Bankruptcy Code. See 11 U.S.C. section 365(a) (allowing a debtor-in-possession, "subject to the court's approval," to "assume or reject any executory contract.").
Withdrawal liability under ERISA can be a significant factor considered by private equity funds in making investments in portfolio companies. And it becomes an even more significant factor if the private equity fund is determined to be a member of the company’s “control group” in which case the fund (and perhaps its partners) c