As the business world starts to count the cost of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government measures taken to contain it, attention is turning to the tools available to help companies that have been financially impacted.

Many companies are deferring payments to conserve liquidity, raising difficult questions around directors’ duties and leading to an immediate focus on how to protect the business from resulting creditor action.

The English Court of Appeal has handed down its judgment in the Debenhams case, on which we acted. A copy of the judgment can be downloaded here. This upholds the decision of the High Court, which followed the earlier decision in Carluccio’s.

This note sets out the duties of the following directors of French companies with a particular focus on the duties owed by such directors of companies in financial difficulties:

The declaration of the state of emergencybecause of the COVID-19 crisis will significantly increase the number of applications for insolvency in Spain.

Measures proposed by the General Council of the Judiciary (Consejo General del Poder Judicial) (GCJ) are designed to streamline insolvency proceedings in order to facilitate the continuity of the business activity of insolvent companies or, at least, to enable them to obtain the maximum performance from the sale of their assets.

In this context, the GCJ measures appear to be based on two principles:

As part of the package of measures to mitigate the effects of the corona crisis, the German Bundestag has fast-tracked an act to mitigate the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in civil law, insolvency law, and the law on criminal procedure, adopting it into law on 25 March 2020. 

The act contains a civil law moratorium that benefits parties who owe certain forms of contractual performance where the COVID-19 pandemic has forced them into the position that they cannot meet their contractual obligations.

- Main points of interest and preliminary analysis –

2019 was a momentous year for the energy sector: The U.S. became a net oil exporter for the first time in recorded history and at the same time energy dropped to less than five percent of the S&P 500 Index. With the precipitous drop in commodity prices and macroeconomic volatility triggered by the oil price war and COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 presents challenges and change for the global and domestic energy sectors. We thank all of our valued clients and look forward to working with you to anticipate and solve problems and capitalize on industry and global trends.

As the economic turbulence associated with the downturn in commodity prices and the outbreak of COVID-19 continues, many energy companies may find their debt trading at significant discounts. For companies trying to manage liability and liquidity, this presents an opportunity to selectively repurchase debt and de-lever at prices well below par. Energy companies that are well-situated to capitalize on this window should carefully consider the corporate and tax ramifications debt buybacks present.

Corporate Considerations

The German parliament has adopted new legislation yesterday which is expected to become law soon. This briefing summarises the changes made, as well as a number of other legal aspects we find noteworthy in current times with regard to the real estate sector.

On 25 March 2020, the German Parliament (Bundestag) passed, in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, significant changes in law (the “New Law”). These changes are subject to approval by the Federal Council (Bundesrat), which, however, is expected to be granted soon.

As the U.S. energy industry comes to grips with the most dire economic crisis in its history, wrought by an invisible virus and global oil price war, and with many exploration and production (E&P) producers substantially adjusting their capital and maintenance budgets, all parties must carefully assess their partners’ financial positions. The bankruptcy filing of a joint venture partner (whether operator or nonoperator) can lead to substantial problems for the other joint venture partner(s) and potentially hamstring operations on the co-owned lands.