Three recent court decisions address the scope and limits of bankruptcy injunctions barring future asbestos claims. The decisions – from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, a Maryland bankruptcy court, and the Montana Supreme Court – underscore that (i) broad notice of proposed injunctions is critical and (ii) channeling injunctions under § 524(g) of the Bankruptcy Code apply only to liabilities that are derivative of the debtor’s liabilities, not to a company’s own liabilities.
In these unprecedented times, the U.K. government is seeking to preserve U.K. businesses and has already introduced significant measures to achieve that aim, including:
States across the country have enacted so-called “reviver” statutes allowing otherwise time-barred claims for childhood sexual abuse to proceed. The statutes vary by jurisdiction, but generally do one of three things: (1) eliminate the statute of limitations for such claims; (2) extend the statute of limitations for such claims; or (3) create a window (e.g., a period of a few years) in which otherwise time-barred claims can be filed.
Only two asbestos bankruptcy cases were filed in 2019 – the lowest number in any one year since Congress enacted the special asbestos bankruptcy trust/channeling injunction statute, Section 524(g) of the Bankruptcy Code.
The Act of February 13, 1998 (the Renault Act) sets out the rules and procedure all employers from the private sector need to follow in case of restructuring. The rules have not been modified since the Act’s adoption (which was largely prompted by the closing of the Renault factory in 1997, causing the redundancy of 3,100 employees).
More than 20 years have passed. An update is due.
Saam Golshani and Alexis Hojabr, White & Case LLP
This is an extract from the first edition of GRR's The Art of the Pre-Pack. The whole publication is available here.
Christopher Harlowe and Christopher Levers, Mourant
This is an extract from the first edition of GRR's The Art of the Pre-Pack. The whole publication is available here.
The Cayman Islands has established itself as the jurisdiction of choice for financially sophisticated businesses such as hedge funds, private equity funds, special purpose vehicles and trusts that use offshore vehicles.
David Baxter and Brian O’Malley, A&L Goodbody
This is an extract from the first edition of GRR's The Art of the Pre-Pack. The whole publication is available here.
Introduction
Pre-packs in Ireland probably are not as common as they should be. In theory, a pre-pack is broadly available in each of our insolvency procedures: liquidation, examinership and receivership.
Dominic Emmett and Hannah Cooper, Gilbert + Tobin
This is an extract from the first edition of GRR's The Art of the Pre-Pack. The whole publication is available here.
Dennis F Dunne, Dennis C O'Donnell and Nelly Almeida, Milbank LLP
This is an extract from the first edition of GRR's The Art of the Pre-Pack. The whole publication is available here.
Introduction