In the case of BP Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd v Intertrans Earl SA (Pty) Ltd & Others (34716/2016) [2016] ZAGPJHC 310 (25 November 2016), the court had to consider two important issues: firstly, whether suspension of a contract by the business rescue practitioner in terms of s136(2)(a)(i) and (ii) of the Companies Act, No 1971 of 2008 (Act) suspends not only the obligations of the business rescue practitioner to perform in terms of the contract entered into between the parties, but whether it also suspends the obligations of the other contracting parties.

The creditors of a company in financial distress are often faced with various options. A debtor company can either be liquidated, placed in business rescue or enter into a compromise with its creditors without first being placed in liquidation. Although an offer of compromise, at first glance, may seem very attractive to creditors, there may be many pitfalls of which creditors must be aware.

Creditors face daily uphill battles when trying to collect money from debtors. Not only has the National Credit Act, No 34 of 2005 made it more onerous on creditors to recover debts due to them, but creditors must constantly be aware of the threat of a claim prescribing.

The Prescription Act, No 68 of 1969 (Act) provides that a debt is extinguished by prescription after the period set out in the Act.

When Hanjin Shipping went into administration in late 2016, reportedly over 500,000 containers were stranded or arrested at ports worldwide, including many in the Middle East. Cargo owners who find themselves in such circumstances can be critically affected (particularly if the cargo is temperature sensitive, perishable or urgently required), and they will often look to their cargo insurers. This note highlights a number of issues which are likely to arise when a carrier becomes insolvent during a laden voyage, and claims are made under a marine cargo policy in the UAE.

In Freshvest Investments (Pty) Ltd v Marabeng (Pty) Ltd (1030/2015) [2016] ZASCA 168, the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) was afforded the opportunity to pronounce on the so called Badenhorst rule which assumes its name from Badenhorst v Northern Construction Enterprises (Pty) Ltd 1956 (2) SA 346 (T).

Affirmative action measures were introduced in South Africa to reconcile the injustices of the past. Although policies have been implemented for the achievement of equality for persons previously disadvantaged, at what point do these policies unjustifiably infringe the rights of persons affected by them?

In our previous two briefings on the Bankruptcy Law, we have looked at a summary of the key changes made by the Law, and the potential personal liability faced by directors of UAE companies in financial difficulty. In this briefing, we turn to creditor protection.

It has been just over two months since one of South Korea's largest shipowners and operators, Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd (“Hanjin”), applied for court rehabilitation. On 1 September 2016, the Bankruptcy Division 6 of the Seoul Central District Court (the “court”) issued a decision accepting that application and commencing rehabilitation proceedings.

Privy Council considers entitlement to costs of preparing to comply with a third party disclosure order

The UAE government has issued Federal Decree Law No. 9 of 2016 on Bankruptcy (the New Law). The New Law was published in the Official Gazette with a publication date of 29 September 2016 and will come into force three months later on 29 December 2016.

Key Points