The UK Jurisdiction Taskforce (UKJT) has published its "Legal Statement on Digital Assets and English Insolvency Law." The Statement confirms the view that digital assets are a form of personal property to which insolvency laws apply. It also affirms that the current approach taken by the English courts to determine whether they are the appropriate venue for the commencement of insolvency proceedings works for a company dealing in digital assets.
1. Introducción
En la edición de este mes de abril destacamos la ya famosa sentencia de la Audiencia Provincial de Valencia del 27 de marzo que declara la ineficacia total del plan de restructuración de Das Photonic, S.L.
Sobre esta sentencia se ha hablado mucho porque es la primera declaración de ineficacia de un plan de restructuración.
La sentencia tiene casi 150 páginas pero reseñamos abajo los puntos clave de su contenido que hemos extractado porque creemos pueden servir de lección para casos futuros.
In brief
When would the directors of a company be bound to consider the interest of the company's creditors? This was the issue at the heart of the Singapore Court of Appeal's (SGCA) watershed decision in Foo Kian Beng v OP3 International Pte Ltd (in liquidation) [2024] SGCA 10, which comes hot on the heels of the UK Supreme Court's pronouncements on the same issue in BTI 2014 LLC v Sequana SA and others [2022] UKSC 25.
Communicating with Scheme Creditors: Beware of Zealous Advocacy
A-Cap Energy Limited [2023] FCA 1356 ("A-Cap") and Symbio Holdings Limited [2024] FCA 40 ("Symbio")
The main communication with scheme creditors is the explanatory statement approved at the first court hearing.
However, there can be other communications which are proposed to be sent to creditors.
In the case of other communications which are known at the time of the first hearing, they can include:
1. Introducción
En la edición de este mes de marzo destacamos:
La Sentencia de la Audiencia Provincial de Barcelona de 20 de diciembre de 2023 que considera irrescindible la hipoteca constituida por la concursada a favor de la AEAT incluso cuando lo que se garantiza es la deuda de un tercero, y no la propia.
In brief
The UAE has issued Federal Law No. 48 of 2023 in relation to insolvency (the "New Insolvency Law"), which replaces Federal Law No. 9 of 2016 and comes into effect on 1 May 2024. Although the previous law was more progressive compared to the previous insolvency articles embedded in the old Commercial Code of 1993, at least in relation to the numerous insolvency matters and other protective composition and restructuring witnessed by the courts.
We have set out below some of the key characteristics of the New Insolvency Law:
Mareva orders, also known as freezing orders, may be granted when there is a risk that a defendant might move its assets out of reach of the court’s jurisdiction. Mareva can orders freeze assets owned directly or indirectly by the defendants. Oftentimes a defendant subject to a freezing order has other creditors seeking repayment. Can a creditor enforce its claim against the frozen assets? Yes, but the creditor must come to the court with clean hands and should not make loans to the defendant if it has notice of the order.
This Quickguide outlines some practical considerations for companies whose contractual counterparties are experiencing financial distress, including what questions may be asked of the counterparty in relation to its distress and how to negotiate payment terms or recover debts.
1. Overview
DoCA’s: Discriminating between Creditors -Is it for a Proper Purpose
Canstruct Pty Limited v Project Sea Dragon Pty Limited (No. 4) [2024] FCA 112 ("Canstruct")
In brief
On 18 January 2024, the Singapore International Commercial Court (SICC) issued its decision in Re PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk [2024] SGHC(I) (“Re Garuda Indonesia“), which was the SICC’s first decision on an application under the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency (as enacted in Singapore in the Third Schedule of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (2020 Rev Ed) (“Singapore Model Law“)).