We are receiving numerous enquiries regarding the fallout from the bankruptcy of OW Bunker A/S and certain associated companies.  At this stage, some companies are in formal bankruptcy proceedings, with the Court protection that usually entails, but others are not. 

On October 17, 2014, the Delaware Supreme Court entered an opinion holding that a UCC-3 termination statement that is authorized by the secured party is effective to terminate the original UCC filing even though the secured party did not actually intend to extinguish the underlying security interest.¹ Because the court determined that the relevant section of Delaware’s Uniform Commercial Code (the “UCC”) is unambiguous and

On October 16, 2014, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit entered an order requiring a real estate lender, First National Bank (the “Lender”), to refund certain mortgage payments it received from Protective Health Management (the “Debtor”), an affiliate of its borrower.¹   Because  the mortgage payments constituted actual fraudulent transfers, the Fifth Circuit held that the Lender could retain the payments only to the extent of  the value of the Debtor’s continued use of the property.²&

In June 2013 the Complaints Gateway was established to provide a single entry point for regulatory complaints against insolvency practitioners.  The Insolvency Service has published an analysis of the complaints received by the Complaints Gateway in its first 12 months; the headline being an increase in complaints being made against insolvency practitioners from 748 to 941 complaints.

Another bankruptcy court—this time in New York—has weighed in on the issue of whether “make whole” provisions are enforceable in bankruptcy. See In re MPM Silicones, LLC, et al. (a/k/a Momentive Performance Materials).

Court of Appeal denies input tax on accountancy services relating to arefinancing and restructuring process: Airtours Holiday Transport Limited vHMRC5

As the wave of litigation spawned by the 2008 financial crisis begins to ebb, insurance-coverage litigation arising out of the credit crisis continues unabated. Financial institutions have successfully pursued insurance coverage for many credit-crisis claims under directors and officers (D&O) and errors and omissions (E&O) policies that they purchased to protect themselves against wrongful-act claims brought by their customers, but in response, some insurers continue to raise inapplicable exclusions in an attempt to diminish or limit coverage for their policyholders.

Pre-packs involve the pre-determined sale of a business before it enters administration, allowing a sale within days of an administrator's appointment. Examples of pre-packs include Dreams, JJB Sports and stockbroker Seymour Pierce. Pre-packs are a useful tool for the insolvency profession allowing businesses to be sold before being unduly damaged by the insolvency process, often saving jobs that might otherwise be lost.

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (the “Court”) issued an opinion limiting the ability of a “loan to own” secured creditor to credit bid at an auction for the sale of substantially all of the debtors’ assets.¹ The Court focused on the fact that the creditor’s conduct interfered with the sale process and was motivated by its desire to “own the Debtors’ business” rather than to have its d

Historically, HMRC has allowed insolvency practitioners to, at an early stage following their
appointment, cancel the VAT registration of the insolvent business. Practitioners have then been 
entitled to account for VAT on any subsequent supplies using HMRC’s form VAT 833 (Statement of 
Value Added Tax on goods sold in satisfaction of a debt).